May the Odds Be Ever In Your Favour
by millierascal
Summary: Jude Parren is not your average bloodthirsty Career tribute, but she promises to do everything she can to come home again...But if she survives, what will become of her? Please read and review!
1. Chapter 1

Her hands with their luminous pink nails like talons hover indecisively over the glass bowl filled with girls' names. I'm eighteen this year, it's my last reaping, my last one, I'll never have to go through this torture again. I keep repeating this over and over in my head. My heart is pounding. I watch her fingers flex and extend lazily, prolonging the agony, then swoop to pick one name out.

"Jude Parren!" she trills.

I exhale roughly, as though I've been punched in the stomach. My heart skips a beat and I can't move. The peacekeepers have to take me under each arm and haul me up on stage. I see people looking surprised at my reaction once I get up on stage; usually the people reaped from District 4 are happy to be picked. Ecstatic even. They've trained for this all their lives, it is supposed to be an honour to be chosen to represent your district in the fight to the death that is the Hunger Games.

My sister couldn't stop smiling when she was reaped 2 years ago. She was excited about the fame and glory, getting to see the capitol and never having to worry about money ever again.

Nina stopped smiling when her throat was slit by a cunning girl from district 2 who was supposed to be her ally.

I shake my head to clear that grim image out of my head, gather myself and smile broadly at the crowd. Minnie Tuza, the capitol escort, owner of those weird pink nails, looks relieved that I have come to my senses and realized how fantastic this is for me. She grins, displaying numerous diamonds set into her teeth. Capitol people and their bizarre trends.

There's a commotion in the crowd. I look down and see a blonde girl, who looks about fourteen, tussling with the peacekeepers. She breaks away from them and yells, 'I volunteer! I volunteer as tribute!' I feel a stab of anger. Who does this girl think she is? Throwing her life away for no reason? She looks directly at me and I recognize her. Her mother is a baker in the town, a very nice woman. I can't be responsible for her losing her daughter. I can't let anybody take my place in this, it is my burden to bear.

Minnie looks at me , raising an eyebrow in question. I shake my head quickly and she smiles. 'Sorry, child but we don't require a volunteer. Jude is excited about representing District 4 – she's got ambition, this one!' The young girl looks crestfallen. 'Maybe next year, sweetie! May the odds be ever in your favour!' Minnie chirps in her affected Capitol accent. I feel like punching her. What does that stupid phrase even mean? They use it every year on reaping day, over and over. It doesn't make any difference if the odds are in your favour or not. You get picked all the same. The odds aren't in my family's favour, that's for sure.

Minnie turns her attention to the glass bowl of boys' names. Oh no. Luke. There's no way he isn't going to volunteer to go in with me. I scan the boys' side of the crowd, desperately looking for his distinctive bronze head. I find him staring back at me, a look of steely determination on his face. He nods tersely at me. I shake my head furiously and he furrows his eyebrows. Out of the corner of my eye I see Minnie seizing a single piece of paper from the bowl.

'Milo Ayre!'

I breath a sigh of relief. Milo is a hulking 17 year old who has been itching to be in the Hunger Games since his first reaping, hell since he could walk probably. He'll never let Luke replace him. I feel a frisson of fear as he makes his way up to the stage, however. He's at least 6'5 and absolutely ripped, and even though I've known him my whole life, I don't think he'd hesitate to kill me. Still, I do my best to smile at him when he comes to stand beside me.

While Milo waves to the crowd, I sneak a glance at Luke, who is having what looks like an argument with his best friend Feda who's standing beside him. No doubt Feda is convincing him not to try and volunteer. He's right. Milo has two older brothers who would probably hurt Luke and his family a lot for even attempting to take this 'oppurtunity' away from their brother. Soon Luke looks back up at me, and shakes his head slightly. I smile at him, curl my right hand into a fist and put it over my heart. Then Minnie grabs that hand and thrusts it into the air, I can see her doing the same with Milo's hand on the other side.

'District 4, I present your tributes for the 69th Annual Hunger Games! Milo Ayre and Jude Parren! I'm sure they'll do your district proud!'

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. *

I sit in a room in the justice building, alone, waiting for my family and friends to come and say goodbye. I know there's a peacekeeper outside the door to make sure I don't make a break for it. If I had the nerve to jump out the window, there is probably one waiting on the ground outside there too. It's not uncommon for tributes to try and escape, and the capitol just hate when that happens.

The door creaks open and my mother walks in, her eyes shiny with tears. Without saying a word, she envelops me in her arms. Even though I've inherited my father's height and am at least 6 inches taller than her 5'4, I feel like a child again, running to my mother for comfort when something bad happens. A few moments later, she pulls away and fixes her pale blue eyes, so similar to my own, on me. 'Jude, I want you to do anything it takes to come back.' She said the same thing to Nina when she left. I remember being in this room saying goodbye to my sister and I feel a twinge in my chest.

'I will, Mom.'

'I mean it. I can't lose you both. I'll have nothing left to live for .' There's a knock on the door, meaning our time is almost up. 'I love you, baby,' she says as she takes me in her arms again. 'I love you too,' I croak, tears welling up in my eyes.

As she leaves the room, she turns around and smiles weakly at me. 'Win not just for yourself, but for Nina too.' I nod and then she's gone. And now I am never going to see her again. Tears well up in my eyes as this realization sinks in.

I put my face in my hands for a moment, trying to control myself, and when I move them Luke is in front of me. I fling my arms around him and hold him tightly, wanting to memorize everything about the way he feels, the way he smells; everything. 'Luke, you have no idea how glad I am that you didn't volunteer,' I murmur, not moving my head from his shoulder. 'It's bad enough that I have to go, I just couldn't bear the thought of you having to die too.'

He takes me by the wrists and shoves me away from him slightly, looking intently into my face. 'Jude, you are not going to die. You are going to win this.' His eyes blaze with passion. 'You aren't leaving me forever, do you hear me?'

My heart sinks. Why does he have to make this harder? 'Luke, I-'

'Jude, you are not defenceless. You're a career, you've trained your whole life. You're smart, you're fast, why couldn't you win this?'

'I can't ally with the careers, you know that, not after what happened to Nina. I can't trust them!' I protest.

His mouth is set in a grim line and he says, 'Maybe it's them who shouldn't trust you. I want you to form an alliance with them so you can get weapons and supplies at the Cornucopia. Then the first chance you get, you wipe them all out. Quietly. It's your best shot of getting home.' I'm shocked at this plan. It probably would work, mainly because its unexpected for careers to break alliances until all the other tributes are dead. But could I be that ruthless? 'Promise me you'll do everything you can to come home, Jude.' The harsh expression on his face changes and a tear trickles down his cheek. 'Please, I love you more than anything, please do this for me. I can't bear the thought of you not being here.'

What can I say? 'I'll do my best,' I reply weakly. He pulls me to him again and kisses me firmly on the lips. There's a knock on the door and I move my head to his shoulder, not ready to leave the safety of his arms just yet. 'I love you too obviously. I feel like I should say that before I leave, just in case.' His arms tighten around me and I feel his lips touch the top of my head lightly.

'This isn't goodbye, Jude. I know it.'

I wish I could be so sure.


	2. Chapter 2

That evening, we board the train to the Capitol. There is Capitol cameras on us as we board so I make sure to smile and wave, making it look like I'm happy to be going. It's so luxurious inside I can hardly believe it. My room has a plush carpet and piles of cushions scattered over the bed with luxurious silk blankets. It's not like anyone even lives here, it is just a means of transport, but its the most amazing room I have ever seen. Not that I'm really in the state of mind to appreciate such things. I sit on the edge of the bed and put my face in my hands, relishing the silence. My peace is soon interrupted by a knock on the door and Milo lumbers in without waiting for a reply.

He sits down beside me on the bed. 'So this is pretty awesome, huh?' he grins at me.

'What exactly about this is awesome, Milo?' I ask, exasperated.

'What isn't awesome! Look at this place! We're off to the Capitol, we are going to be on TV, everyone is going to love us!' He smirks and moves closer to me. 'And even better that I get to go with you.' He moves to put his arm around me but I hit it away.

'Milo, please keep your hands to yourself.'

'Oh come on, it's not like you're going to be seeing that boyfriend of yours anytime soon!' I glare at him and he seems to get the message. 'Aw, I'm only kidding anyway, Jude. We're friends, right? Allies for the Games?'

I look him right in the eyes and reply, 'Of course! Career pack and all that.'

'Awesome, I'm so excited, Jude, you have no idea! Anyway, let's go for dinner, Minnie said it would be ready soon!' He bounces out of the room. Ugh I already hate myself for lying. How am I going to follow through on my promise to Luke to kill these people? I get up and wearily follow Milo out of the room.

When I reach the dining room, Milo is already chowing down on a huge mound of food, watched disapprovingly by Minnie, who is nibbling delicately on a salad. I go to the buffet and stare in disbelief and the array of food. Every type of meat, fish, vegetable and sauce ever invented seems to be on that table. Suddenly I'm ravenous and I pile my plate as high as Milo's before settling down at the table. As soon as I sit down, Finnick Odair, our mentor, strolls into the room.

Finnick won the games four years ago when he was only 14. It's hard to believe that he is still only 18, he has been in the limelight ever since his victory and his face is as well known to me almost as my own. He's Luke's cousin, but I've nenver met him as he spends a lot of time in the Capitol with his apparently numerous wealthy lovers. He's extremely handsome and has always seemed charming and friendly on TV, but now I guess I can find out for myself. He fills a plate with food and sits down beside Minnie, who has been watching him with a hungry look in her eyes ever since he came in. He winks at her and she actually giggles. Stupid Capitol girls.

Then Finnick turns his gaze to me and I can't help but blush. He is the most handsome man I've ever met. Then his face lights up. 'You're Luke's girlfriend!' he exclaims. 'The one he's been with, like, forever! He has talked about you non-stop since he was about three, I'd say.' I blush even more and nod. Luke and I have known each other since, well, since we were born. We've lived next door to each other our entire lives. He was my best friend when I was a kid and everyone says it was always clear that we would end up together. Finnick's face falls. 'He must be just devastated that you're here, Jude.'

Milo raises his eyes to heaven and gets up to restock his plate at the buffet. Without him there I'm comfortable enough to reply, 'Yeah, he hates that he can't be here with me.' I can't stop the tears from brimming in my eyes.

Finnick reaches across the table for my hand and gives it a squeeze. 'Well, lucky for him, his dear old cousin is, and I am going to do everything I can to keep you alive for him. I promise you that.' I smile and squeeze his hand. Then he ruins the moment by adding. 'If he never gets to sleep with a hot thing like you again because of me, I will never forgive myself!' He bursts out laughing and I roll my eyes.

'Charming.'

'That's what they all say, sweetheart!' he smirks.

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After dinner, we watch the recap of the reapings on television. Finnick says it's important for us to see what we're up against. Milo's eyes are glued to the screen from the start so I try my best to focus too. It's a terrible thing watching 24 teenagers picked, knowing 23 of them will be dead in a matter of weeks. I might have to kill some of them. I'll probably be one of the 23 that die.

The District 1 and 2 tributes are fabulous, as usual. Both beautiful and menacing, both very happy about being picked. I cringe when it comes to District 4 and I'm shown practically being carried up on stage by the peacekeepers. The other tributes are definitely marking me as an easy target. Although I probably gain a little credibility when it shows my refusal to let another girl take my place. Finnick picks up on the way I'm feeling and pats me on the shoulder. 'It's alright, you can make up for it in the interview.'

None of the other tributes really stand out, good or bad, until it comes to District 11, where two kids who have to only be twelve are picked. I'm slightly surprised that nobody volunteers to take their place, people usually don't take it too well when one twelve year old is picked, never mind two. Then it's over and the seal of Panem is on the screen.

Finnick stands up. 'Right, guys, you should both go and try to sleep. Big day ahead tomorrow and you want to make a good impression.'

I return to my fancy room and crawl into the bed, even though I know there's little chance of me getting much sleep.


	3. Chapter 3

The next morning I'm exhausted. I had spent most of the night tossing and turning, occasionally dropping into a nightmare-filled sleep. When I get to the dining room, Finnick, Minnie and Milo were already there. I fill my plate and sit down beside Finnick. 'Your prep team are not going to be happy about those bags under your eyes, Jude,' he jokes. I just glare at him. This is all becoming very real, we're going to be arriving in the Capitol shortly, and I don't see anything worth joking about in this situation.

Finnick obviously realizes that I don't want to talk and so engages Milo with talk of tridents and other weapons. Milo is highly enthusiastic about his fighting skills, which isn't surprising considering he's been training since he was about eight, just like I have. District 4 kids aren't as hardcore as those from 1 and 2, but most still receive a lot of training for the games. My parents sent both me and Nina to a trainer. We used to think it was so much fun, pretend fighting with each other with imitation swords and maces and any weapon you could think of. Taking that into consideration, I'm as prepared for this as any other career tribute. Then again, so was Nina, and look how that turned out. I don't think it'll be as much fun when I'm actually fighting for my life.

With these thoughts churning around in my head, I don't feel much like eating and after a few minutes of pushing food around with my fork I just push the plate away. Finnick raises an eyebrow. 'Now might be a good time to keep your energy levels up, Jude. You got a busy day with the prep team.'

'You want to give them the best possible canvas to work with!' Minnie pipes up. I just glare at her. I've been doing that a lot lately, and I don't like that, but I can't help it.

'You want to give them a better attitude to work with,' Milo mutters without looking up from his plate. Finnick gives him a quick slap on the back of the head. 'Ow! What the hell?' Milo cries, rubbing his head. 'She's acting like a total bitch and I'm the one that gets hit? How fair is that?' He gets up and storms out. Minnie gives me a filthy look and follows him. Finnick just looks at me.

'I'm sorry,' I say after a few awkward moments of silence. 'I am, I just don't- I really don't know how to behave.'

'It's alright, Jude. We'll sort something out. You'll still have an alliance and everything.' Finnick pats my shoulder and walks out. Oh hurray. An alliance. Which I am going to violate. Lovely.

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A few short hours later, I'm standing, naked and self-conscious, in front of a group of four Capitol stylists. The head, Xavia, gazes at me for at least five minutes before saying a word and I grow increasingly restless. Unable to stay still any longer I raise an arm to itch my nose and am shocked when Xavia grabs it. She brings her blue tinged face close to mine and coos, 'My goodness you're a beauty! You don't need much work at all!' The others chorus their agreement, then proceed to contradict everything that they have just said. All of the hair is waxed off my body except for my eyebrows and the hair on my head, my nails are buffed and polished enthusiastically too. No part of me is left untouched with Capitol interference.

The stylist with the jewelled lips (I think her name is Bizia) takes charge over my hair. 'Just beautiful!' she trills. 'You haven't ruined it with the salt water like most District 4 people...well done!' I smile and nod, although this is complete crap. I have spent probably half my life in the sea, but my hair has not suffered the consequences and stayed the same – silky chocolate brown waves that reach well past my shoulderblades. She begins to braid parts of my hair, weaving coloured string in with the chocolate curls.

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The opening ceremonies pass in a flash. I'm dressed in a beautiful floor length dress bedecked with shimmering turquoise sequins – I assume these are to bring to mind fish scales or something, since fishing is District 4's main industry. Milo is dressed in a blazer that matches my dress, which should look ridiculous, but actually looks fantastic.

We sit in the chariot together, waving and blowing kisses at the Capitol citizens who have come out to see the show. Then we watch the other district tributes coming out. They all look quite good, with the exception of the District 12 tributes, who are just covered in coal dust, wearing mining hats. I feel sorry for them. What hope do they have now of getting sponsors? Then it's over and we make our way back to our quarters.

Tomorrow our training begins. I'll actually have to spend time with the people i intend to kill in the next few days. I can't imagine anything worse.


	4. Chapter 4

The next day after breakfast, Milo and I walk into the training centre together in silence. He immediately bounds over to the sword station where the District 2 boy already stands, picks one up and waves it around in a manner which, to be fair, is very impressive. I sigh and move over to the spear station which is still empty. I pick one up and throw it at the target, hitting it right in the centre.

'Nice shot!' a girl's voice comes from behind me. I turn around to see the beautiful girl from District 1. She is even more impressive in person than she was on TV – tall and slim, with pale blonde hair and icy blue eyes, she has an ethereal beauty which makes her look almost fragile. Then she picks up a spear and flings it at the target, where it lands dead centre next to mine and I reconsider that opinion. 'I'm Ruby. District 1,' she smiles at me and sticks out her hand. I accept it and force myself to smile back.

'I'm Jude, District 4.'

'I know who you are! I remember your reaping – wasn't expecting you to be so good when I saw that, to be honest!' she smirks.

I cringe. 'Yeah that was not my finest moment...I don't know what came over me.'

She laughs. 'Well, if you're half as good with the other weapons as you are with that spear, I still want to ally with you if you're up for it! Let's go practice with the bow and arrows.' I allow her to lead me to the next station.

'Bet you I can hit the bullseye blindfolded,' I say as we walk. She laughs.

'I believe you. I bet I can too,' she smirks. 'The bow and arrow was my first weapon. I could probably use it in my sleep.'

I look around furtively to make sure there are no gamemakers or trainers nearby before saying, 'So when did you start training anyway?' I shouldn't ask. We aren't supposed to train in the districts, but nearly all kids from 1, 2 and 4 do. I want to know what I'm up against, how well trained these people are.

Ruby doesn't even look at me when she replies. 'Ummmm...I started properly training when I was 12, but before that I used to mess around with my brothers and sisters. They're all older than me so they used to kick my ass.'

'Were any of them in the Games?'

'Naw, they never got picked. Not like lucky ol' me!'

'My sister was. Two years ago.'

Ruby turns sharply to look at me. 'I take it she didn't win?'

'No...she made it to the final five but got killed by a District 2 girl.'

'I'm sorry,' Ruby says, and with that the conversation is over and we start shooting arrows at the target.

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By lunchtime I have apparently convinced Ruby of my worth and she confirms our alliance. As usual all of the tributes from Districts 1, 2 and 4 are in on it and we all sit down together for lunch. I have spent the last few hours going around the weapons stations with Ruby and, much to my despair, have grown to like her and her dry wit. Fortunately, none of the other careers make such a good impression on me. I'd rather not like them at all. It will make it easier for me to kill them if I don't like them. As usual they're cocky and tough, and I'm glad to know that they're all at least 16. At least I won't be killing any little kids.

The girl from District 2 sits down beside me. 'Jude right? I'm Cleo.' She fixes me with her cold grey eyes. 'So glad you'll be joining us in the arena. You're wicked with, like, every weapon I've seen you with.'

The District 1 boy, I think his name is Lex, smirks. 'You gave us a bit of a surprise, Four. When we saw your reaping we didn't think you were cut out to be one of us.'

I smile sweetly. 'Yeah, well I proved you wrong, didn't I. Lex, is it?'

He laughs. 'That's me. Don't pretend like you haven't noticed me around.' He wiggles his eyebrows suggestively. Like his district partner, Lex is an exceptionally good looking individual. I'm thinking of a witty come back to take him down a peg or two when Milo cuts in.

'Don't even bother, dude. She is one hundred percent spoken for. Already has an Odair for herself.'

The two girls gasp. 'Not Finnick?' Cleo asks incredulously.

'My god I am so jealous!' Ruby exclaims, fanning herself. Lex shoots her an annoyed look, which I find amusing. He must like her or something.

They're all looking at me for confirmation. I glare at Milo. 'I do have a boyfriend...but it's not Finnick, obviously,' I add quickly. 'It's actually just his cousin. I'd never even met Finnick before getting reaped.'

Cleo looks relieved and Ruby smirks. 'I still have a shot when me and him are victors together then,' she jokes, prompting a chorus of abuse from the others. I stay out of it and sit back. Soon lunch is over and it's back to training for the afternoon.

I abandon Ruby to the sword station and wander off by myself to the edible plants station. I spend the rest of the afternoon by myself, going around the stations I don't know a whole lot about – camouflage, knots, things like that. A couple of the tributes from other districts try to engage me in conversation once I'm away from the rest of the careers, but I brush them off. I'm not here to make friends. I'm with the careers because they might help me survive, but I don't want to get to know any more of these people I'm going to have to kill.


	5. Chapter 5

The two training days pass in a blur and before I know it it's time to have our private sessions with the gamemakers, where we're supposed to show off our skills to get the highest possible scores. I don't know what I'm going to do to impress them that I haven't done before. I watch the other careers being summoned in, and strutting confidently to showcase their talents.

Finally my name is called and I walk into the training room alone. I'm lucky that I'm from one of the early districts, I immediately realize. The gamemakers have not yet been too distracted by the food and drink available to them. I stride to the spear station, pick one up and fling it at the target, getting a bullseye as usual. I make my way around all of the weapons stations and show my near perfect use of them all. After that I am at a bit of a loss of what to do next, so go and make some snares at the knot tying station.

'That'll do, Miss Parren,' the Head Gamemaker, Talias Gem, calls. I nod my head, bow slightly and leave the room, wondering if I have done enough to get any kind of decent score, at least a score that will keep me on a par with the other careers.

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Later that evening, after dinner, we all sit down to watch the training scores. Finnick, Minnie and Milo chat comfortably, but I am silent and my heart is pounding. If I don't get a good score there is a good chance that Ruby and the others will rethink their decision to ally with me, and I just can't have that happen. Making this alliance happen is probably my only chance of getting home to my Mom, to Luke. I need it.

The seal of Panem appears on the screen and the others hush.

Lex's handsome face is the first to appear on the screen, receiving a ten. He's followed by Ruby, who gets an eleven. Finnick whistles. 'She must be a tough cookie.' I just nod.

Both Mikai and Cleo from 2 get eights. The boy from 3 who I haven't spoken to once gets a seven, the girl a five. Milo's face flashes up, followed by an eight. Then it's my turn. I'm surprised to see a nine flash after my face. I did better than Milo – he is not going to like that. This is confirmed when I turn to him to find him scowling back at me.

Fine, I won't be friendly either. I look at him coldly and return my gaze to the screen. None of the other tributes have done too well, mostly scoring between five and seven. I'm surprised to see that the tiny twelve year olds from 11 both scored sevens – that is pretty impressive considering their age and size. Then the viewing is over and Finnick is congratulating us on our scores.

'Well done, both of you. So long as you guys do well in the interview I am going to have no problem at all getting you sponsors!' Finnick ruffles both of our hair affectionately.

I smile, but Milo continues to look surly. I can't believe how pissed he seems that I did better than him. He's making it too easy for me to dislike him.


	6. Chapter 6

That night, my sleep is disturbed by bizarre nightmares, about the Games, mutts, Luke, and other things I can't remember once I'm awake. In the morning I trudge to the dining room where, as usual, the others are already eating.

'Morning Jude,' Finnick smiles. 'Today you will be spending the morning with Minnie for some etiquette training and then the afternoon with me to work out your strategy. Okay?'

Minnie gives me a winning smile. I bet she is just dying to teach me and Milo some manners, we have clearly been bugging her from day one. 'Yeah whatever,' I mumble and tuck into my breakfast.

That morning is possibly the worst of my life. Apparently I have been standing, sitting, walking, talking and basically doing everything wrong for my whole life, and Minnie is determined to fix all of that in a few hours. Oh, and, fix it with me in heels. I'm exhausted and cranky from walking up and down with my back rigid when we finally sit down to lunch with the guys, but Minnie does seem satisfied with my progress.

'She is going to do great, I think, Finnick!' she chirps, patting me on the shoulder as I sit down.

Finnick smiles. 'Of that I have no doubt. She is going to charm the pants off them all.' He notices Milo's scowl at this comment and adds, 'Not unlike Milo here. He is going to give a great interview too, methinks.' Milo looks slightly appeased and Finnick winks at me.

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After lunch, Finnick and I are left alone.

'Okay, Jude. What is your persona for this games?'

'My...persona?'

'What do you want people to think of you? Do you want to be sexy, witty, cunning, what?' He laughs at my confused expression. 'Don't tell me you were planning on being yourself,' he teases.

'I hadn't really thought about it, to be honest.'

'Okay, I'm going to ask you something now and I hope you're not offended or anything,' Finnick stares hard at me and I nod mutely, curious as to what he is going to say. 'Jude, is there any chance at all that you could be pregnant? Because that is something that we could definitely play up.' My mouth drops open. 'Don't be mad at me for asking! I'm just trying to give you the best chance possible!'

'I'm not mad...No I don't think I could be...'

'Some people might have...moral objections to killing a pregnant woman. That's all I'm saying.'

'I see where you're coming from. Can I think about it?' Finnick nods. I take a deep breath. 'Finnick...if I tell you something, do you promise not to tell anyone?' He nods again. 'I kind of...promised Luke that I would form an alliance with the careers...then kill them all when they least expect it.' Finnick's mouth drops open.

'Luke came up with that plan? Gentle hearted Luke?'

I squirm. 'Yes. I guess he really wants me back alive.'

Finnick lets out a slow whistle. 'Well in that case, I take back the pregnant idea. You need to come across as having no weakness. You need to be sexy, smart...everything. You have to make sure the careers see you as a threat. Enough of a threat that they want you as an ally, but not so much that they'll want to take you out – before you can take them out.'

'Do you think I can do this?' I can't even look him in the eye. 'People will hate me, Finnick. I don't know if I can go ahead with it.' I begin to tear up. 'I don't want to kill anyone.'

He puts a hand under my chin and forces me to look up at him. 'You're not responsible for their deaths, Jude, the Capitol is. It's their sick game that is forcing you all to make these choices. You're not a bad person for wanting to stay alive. People will understand that. And Luke will never forgive you if you go down without a fight, that I know for sure. I won't feel too good about it either. My priority is to keep you safe, for my family.' I nod. 'So you need to give a stellar interview. Be confident. Show no weakness.'

'I'll do my best.'

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That evening, it's time for our interviews. My prep team have done a job on me again and put me in another dazzling sequined dress. When I look at myself in the mirror I hardly recognize this shiny, glamorous version of myself. But that's what I need. To be a better version of myself – to win.

Both Ruby and Lex come across well in their interviews – cocky and funny, exactly the kind of tributes the Capitol love. Their beauty is no harm either. Cleo seems unfriendly and very unlikable, in my opinion. Her district partner, Mikai, doesn't make much of an impression at all.

Before I know it it's my turn and I'm taking my place on the seat opposite Caesar Flickerman, who smiles broadly at me with his green lips. 'Jude, may I say that you are an absolute vision this evening!' he announces.

'Why thank you, Caesar,' I purr, hardly recognizing my own voice. 'You're looking very handsome yourself. I love your new hairdo.' I pat his hand lightly.

Caesar gasps. 'I think I have me an admirer, people!' he jokes to the crowd and is rewarded with a collective laugh. I smile in what I hope is a seductive manner and wait for my next question. But when it comes, that question stops me cold. 'Jude, is it true that your sister was in the games 2 years ago?' Caesar asks, a sympathetic look in his eyes.

For a moment I don't know what to say. Then I collect myself. 'Yes that's right. My sister Nina. She didn't win, but I sure plan to.'

'Are you saying you're going to win for both of you?'

I smile broadly. 'I'm going to do my best. And I'm stronger than I look, I can tell you that! I may have a couple of tricks up my sleeve too,' I say and wiggle my eyebrows suggestively.

'I bet you do!' Caesar pats me on the shoulder. 'And I'm sure you'll have the sponsors queuing up, sassy little thing like you!'

'Well Caesar, I just hope that if I do win, I'll somehow be able to...show my gratitude to those who sponsor me,' I wink at the camera. Then the bell goes to show that my three minutes is up.

'I wish you the best, Miss Parren! As I am sure does all of Panem.' I smile and thank him, and make my way off the stage, feeling relieved that it's over but unsure as to how it has gone. Once I sit down again I catch Finnick's eye in the crowd and he gives me a thumbs up. Phew, I must have done okay.

My relief doesn't last for long. Tomorrow we enter the Hunger Games arena and I highly doubt if I'll be coming out the other side.


	7. Chapter 7

The next morning, Milo and I say our goodbyes to Finnick and Minnie before boarding the hovercraft that will bring us to the arena. Minnie, to my surprise, hugs me tightly and gives me a kiss on the cheek.

'I wish you the best, Jude. It has been just such a pleasure to work with you.' When she pulls away there are tears in her eyes. I'm touched that she actually seems to care that we are going to our deaths. Most Capitol people don't seem to understand that. She moves to Milo and Finnick stands in front of me.

'You can win. For all of us, okay?' Finnick hugs me tightly. 'Do what Luke said,' he whispers in my ear. I nod, he gives me a final kiss on the forehead and then they are gone, leaving me and Milo alone. Ladders come down from the hovercraft and we each take hold of one. Once my hand touches it, I can feel some strange force holding me to it. It's not a nice feeling, knowing that I couldn't escape if I tried. Milo catches my eye and smiles. Seems like he isn't mad at me anymore.

On the hovercraft, a pink haired nurse takes my arm and injects something into the upper part. 'Just a tracker, deary. We wouldn't want to lose you in the arena!'

'Oh no we couldn't have that,' I say sarcastically. She doesn't seem to pick up on the tone of my voice and just nods enthusiastically, proceeding to tell me a story about some kid who got lost in one of the Games about 10 years ago and was completely forgotten about. Like I care about that right now.

What feels like hours later, we arrive at our destination and I am brought to the underground room from where I will be lifted directly into the arena. Unfortunately for me, my last few minutes are spent with my vapid stylist, Xavia. She jabbers about absolutely nothing as I dress in my simple attire of a jumpsuit made of light material, and comfortable leather boots, until I find myself wishing I could just get the the arena already so I don't have to listen to her anymore.

Then the time comes for me to step into the elevator tube that will lift me to the arena, whatever that may look like. With a lump in my throat, I climb in. I close my eyes as the tube moves upwards, and don't open them until I feel a breeze ruffling my ponytail. Then I look around me.

Wow.

We tributes are arranged on our platforms in a circle around the glistening cornucopia. Stuffed inside and littered around the cornucopia are essentials for survival in the arena. The Careers have already made their plan; to stick beside the Cornucopia, gather all of the weapons and supplies we can and kill anyone who tries to take anything. This part of the Games is called the bloodbath, because often up to half of the tributes die within the first hour

As the sixty second countdown begins, I look around me properly. The arena is a massive canyon of reddish rock. For at least a mile around there is nothing to be seen but the jutting of cliff faces and a small river running near the cornucopia. In the distance on one side I can see the dark green of a forest. Most of the tributes will probably make for the forest because, here in the centre, there is nowhere to hide.

Ten. I look around me to see where the rest of the careers are.

Nine. I spot Ruby, 4 people to the left of me, her gaze intent on a bow and sheath of arrows that are tucked right in the mouth of the cornucopia.

Eight. Lex is directly to my right, his hands curled into fists.

Seven. On my left is the tiny District 11 girl. I hope she runs, I don't want to have to kill her.

Six. Milo is on the opposite side of the cornucopia to me, shifting his weight from foot to foot, preparing to run. He catches my eye and nods tersely.

Five. The nearest weapon to me is a set of knives about 10 feet away.

Four.

Three. I clench my teeth and prepare to run, my heart pounding.

Two

One.

The gong sounds and I'm off my platform in a split second and running for the knives. I grab for them but before I can grip them another hand swipes them. I look up and it's the District 6 boy, a look of desperation in his eyes. He grasps the handle of one but I swing for him, catching his jaw with my fist and knocking him off-balance. He tips over slightly and then a sword swings out of nowhere and slices into his torso.

'Already need me to come to your rescue, eh Jude?' Lex, the bearer of the sword smirks, then finishes the District 6 boy off by stabbing him through the heart. I flinch and hope Lex doesn't notice how much that bothered me.

'I appreciate your help, my knight in shining armour,' I force myself to reply dryly, picking up the knives. He laughs and runs over to where Ruby is in hand to hand combat with another girl.

I look around. The bloodbath is already well underway, with 5 dead bodies lying around the cornucopia, and several hand-to-hand fights going on. Milo looks like he's fighting a losing battle with the District 12 boy and before I even have time to think, I'm running in his direction. I throw a knife at the boy and it embeds between his shoulderblades. He cries out in pain and drops his weapon, allowing Milo to deal a lethal blow with his sword. Oh God.

I look around and see that the bloodbath seems to be over, Ruby, Lex, Cleo and Milo have all won whatever fights they were in unscathed, and are now picking through the goods littered around. I don't see Mikai, but then I notice him on the ground about a hundred feet away, a spear protruding from his chest. A girl with flaming red hair is darting away from his body, holding another spear. I think she's the District 8 girl. She makes a run for the forest and boy is she fast. Cleo starts to chase her but realizes quickly that she has no chance of catching her, so turns back. I can see about 10 people altogether running in different directions away from the cornucopia, some carrying small amounts of supplies and weapons, some empty handed.

Ruby picks up the bow and arrows, a satisfied expression on her face at finding her favourite weapon. I walk over to her.

'Short bloodbath, huh,' she comments as she pulls an arrow from the sheath. She sends it flying in the direction of a figure running away, and doesn't miss her mark, hitting him dead centre in the chest. He falls immediately. I think it's the 12 year old boy from District 11. 'Dammit I think the rest have gone too far to hit with this.'

'Yeah don't waste the arrows. We'll track them down. There's nowhere to hide in this canyon and that forest looks pretty small.'

'It does look small. If they all try to hide in there they'll start fighting with each other. Less work for us!' Lex adds.

'Less fun, more like,' grumbles Cleo as she picks up a huge mace. 'I want to get that bitch who took out Mikai.' There's a dark glint in her eye as she swings the brutal weapon around, testing its weight. She seems to be enjoying this way too much. She is the last person I am going to trust.

Ruby nods, 'You can have her Cleo.' She catches my eye and winks. 'If you can catch her that is.' Lex laughs loudly, earning himself a glare from Cleo.

We begin to pick through the supplies, seeing what's available. We all pause as the cannons start to go off. There are nine blasts.

Fifteen tributes left.


	8. Chapter 8

It doesn't take us long to sort through the supplies available around the cornucopia. There is plenty of food and water, although with the stream running nearby, winding all the way from behind the forest well past the cornucopia until it's out of sight on the other side, it doesn't look like that will be as much of an issue for us as it has been in past games. I've seen ones where tributes died of dehydration because the only water source in the arena was a lake beside the cornucopia, patrolled by a pack of careers. A sure fire way for the Gamemakers to guarantee constant fighting.

Since only one or two of the tributes who got away managed to get their hands on a weapon, there's more than enough for us to choose from. I take a bow and a quiver of arrows and throw them over my shoulder, and tuck a sharp dagger into my belt in case I need something for close range combat.

Ruby is similarly armed, but both of the remaining boys have armed themselves with huge swords and spears, and Milo also carries a brutal looking mace. Cleo seems to have one of every type of weapon. I don't know how she's managing to juggle them, or why she thinks she needs them all.

We all have something to eat before coming up with a plan of what to do next. After we sorted our supplies into piles, we had moved away from the cornucopia slightly so the hovercraft could remove the dead bodies, and set up a little campsite for ourselves. I'm extremely grateful that the bodies are gone – looking at the mutilated remains was making me feel very ill.

'So what should we do now?' Lex asks as he swallows his last cracker.

'I don't know, genius. Go kill some people maybe?' Cleo's voice drips with sarcasm. Ruby rolls her eyes, confirming that I'm not the only one who is being rubbed up the wrong way by Cleo's attitude.

'Cleo, we're not just going to wander aimlessly around the arena and hope it works out,' Ruby snaps. 'We need a plan for the most efficient way of wiping out the competition. And somebody needs to stay here and guard the supplies. Since you're the one with the amazing suggestions, maybe you should just stay here. Come on Jude, Lex. Let's go look around.' She strides away without waiting for Cleo to reply. Lex smirks, pats Cleo condescendingly on the head and runs after Ruby. Cleo glares murderously at me as I walk past.

'Wait, what about me?' Milo shouts after Ruby.

'Just go!' Cleo spits, shoving him after us.

So all four of us head for the forest, walking along the dusty red rock. A few minutes later, I turn around to see Cleo flinging rocks furiously at the cornucopia in the distance. Ruby turns too and laughs. 'God that girl is so annoying. I got dibs on killing her.' A gasp escapes before I can stop myself and she looks at me questioningly. 'Jude, come on. We all know this alliance is only going to last for so long. Don't act surprised.'

'I know, but-'

'But nothing! She is the last person I want to win this thing. So if I'm going to die, I am going to make damn sure she goes before I do. I recommend that you do the same.' Then she smiles sweetly and says jokingly, 'I think you should be grateful that I want to kill her more than I want to kill you. It's quite a compliment really, isn't it?'

I can't help but laugh, although it really isn't funny in the slightest. What a compliment, knowing that there is somebody she wants to kill more than me. What a bizarre situation this is. Right now we're...well, I guess we are kind of friends. But if Ruby were to turn around and snap my neck, well, I wouldn't exactly be surprised. Such is life in the Hunger Games, after all. You can't trust anyone.

Lex butts in , 'As much as I enjoy thinking about Cleo being dead, shouldn't we be planning our strategy or something?'

'I'm pretty sure all of the others went for the forest,' Milo begins. 'So we should-' he stops short and drops to his knees suddenly. A cannon blasts. What the hell...? Everything happens very fast then. The boy who appeared as if from nowhere behind us pulls his spear out of Milo's torso and runs for me. Ruby is faster, loading her bow in a second and letting fly an arrow that hits him in the neck. He drops to the ground, making horrible gurgling noises. Then he lies still and his cannon fires.

Ruby roughly pulls her arrow out of his neck and puts it back in her quiver. 'District 7 I think. What was he thinking coming up against four of us, the idiot!' She gives his body a kick. 'Dammit I can't believe we lost Milo already!'

'Where the heck did he come from?' Lex asks and we all look around. We're surrounded by cracked red rock on every side, there are no plants, trees, anything. I don't understand where he could have been hiding. Although some of those cracks look pretty big...I take a closer look.

'There's little hollows in the rock,' I announce. 'They're like tiny caves. None of us would probably fit, but some of the twelve or thirteen year olds could.' I nod in the direction of the victim of Ruby's arrow. He's pretty small. 'Like him, I suppose.'

Ruby and Lex come closer to look. Lex mutters an expletive. 'I guess they might not all be in the forest then. Maybe we should go back to camp and think this through more. I don't want to be jumped by some kid – that would be pretty embarrassing.'

Ruby nods, looking angry, and we turn back. The light in the arena is beginning to fade anyway, it probably isn't the best time to be searching a forest. We are much more vigilant on the way back, watching the larger cracks in the rock warily, but we don't see anybody else. On the way, we hear another cannon. I shake my head; the tributes are just dropping like flies. Lots of action for the Capitol viewers, which will hopefully keep us safe from any interventions from the Gamemakers for now. I wonder who that last cannon was for and what happened to them. I guess we'll find out tonight.

When our little camp comes into view, Cleo is sitting watching out for us. 'Thanks a lot for leaving me here,' she whines. 'The District 10 girl tried to steal our supplies and I had to kill her...she put up a fight though.' She gestures to a gash across her thigh. 'What the hell happened to you guys?' she demands. 'You didn't get very far! Where's Milo?'

'We got jumped,' Lex says wearily. 'Milo's dead, so is the kid who killed him.'

Cleo shocks me by bursting out laughing. 'Bet he wishes he stayed here with me now!' Lex narrows his eyes at her angrily but she is oblivious to our reaction. She sits down and returns to sharpening her knife, which is now stained with blood – presumably that of the poor girl who tried to take our stuff. Then Ruby steps up behind her and grabs a handful of her mousy hair, yanking hard.

'Why don't you have some respect?' Ruby hisses right in Cleo's ear.

'What the hell are you doing? Let go of me!' Cleo cries.

'Apologize!' Lex commands. 'Milo was your ally, he deserves not to be made a mockery of.'

'No! I'll kill you, you bitch! Let go of me!' Cleo struggles to reach the knife she dropped when Ruby grabbed her. She gets a grip on it and swings it blindly towards Ruby, managing to cut along her porcelain cheek.

'Aaagh!' Ruby appears infuriated that somebody has dared to mark her beautiful face. She catches Lex's eye, he nods, and before I can say or do anything, Ruby drags her dagger across Cleo's cheek. Blood flows out; bright red against her pale skin. She screams and I wince. This can't end well. 'You mark me, I mark you,' Ruby snarls. 'I can go deeper if you like.' She lazily traces patterns on Cleo's cheek with her dagger, not quite hard enough to draw blood again.

'Okay! Okay!' Cleo yells, panicked and pleading. 'I'm sorry! Just stop, please!'

Ruby smiles radiantly. 'See, was that so hard?' She lets go and Cleo storms away, glaring at Lex and I as she passes.

'Ruby...' I don't even know what I'm going to say.

'Please, she was being such a bitch, she needed telling off,' Ruby sneers. 'And in case you didn't notice, she cut me first!' She gestures angrily to the bleeding mark on her cheek.

'Because you were pulling her around by the hair,' I reply flatly, even though I realize there is probably no point in reasoning with Ruby about this.

'Ugh whatever, Jude.' Ruby is barely paying attention to me, so busy is she trying to figure out how much damage has been done to her perfection. I'm liking her less and less as time passes.

'We won't be giving her first watch tonight, that's for sure,' Lex adds. 'She'd kill us all in our sleep.'

I don't say what I'm thinking; that right now I wouldn't blame Cleo for doing just that.


	9. Chapter 9

Cleo doesn't speak to us again for a few hours. We sit around our fire near the cornucopia, quietly munching on crackers and jerky and the other not exactly appetizing food that has been supplied.

When night falls, I hear the anthem that precedes the death recap. Now we'll know for sure who's dead and who's left. I lie back on my sleeping bag and look straight up into the sky, where the seal of the Capitol looks as though it's floating in midair, although I know it's really a giant screen carried by a hovercraft. Just for our viewing pleasure; how very kind of the Capitol.

Obviously, since Lex and Ruby are lying beside me also looking at the sky, the first face to appear is that of Mikai. I glance at Cleo, whose mouth is set in a hard line. Next is the girl from district 3, then Milo. Two careers dead in the first day – that'll be a surprise for most viewers. Then the boy from District 6 I fought for the knives. Both from 7; Ruby was right, it was the District 7 boy who killed Milo; he's unmistakable in his picture with his head of blonde curls, although he looks very different without the expression of panic and desperation he wore when he jumped us. The boy from 8. Both from 9 gone. The girl from 10 who was Cleo's latest victim. The young boy from 11 who Ruby hit with the arrow as he ran away. The boy from 12 that I threw the knife at to help Milo. A lot of good that did him in the end. A few extra hours was all he got from my interference.

Twelve people dead in one day. Twelve kids' lives over, their families destroyed forever. And for what? The entertainment of the Capitol. I've always been aware of how appalling these games are, how lives are destroyed by them...but now that I'm here, now that I have played a hand in destroying some of those lives, I don't think I'll ever be the same again. Even if I do make it out alive.

Ruby speaks up, interrupting my thoughts. 'I'm exhausted,' she yawns. 'We should get some sleep. Who wants first watch?'

'I'll take it,' Lex says. 'You girls get some beauty sleep. You need it.' He nudges Ruby and is rewarded with a giggle as she turns over in her sleeping bag. Cleo doesn't acknowledge that anything has been said, appearing asleep already. I nod at him as he stations himself looking towards the forest, sword in hand, and close my eyes. I don't expect to fall asleep anytime soon with everything I've been through today.

.

.

.

Next thing I know, I'm being shaken awake by Cleo. I slowly open my eyes, confused. Can it be morning already? I can't believe I slept the whole night. Then I realize that it's still pitch black – something must be happening.

I sit up slowly, rubbing my eyes. 'About effing time,' Cleo snaps. The deep laceration on her cheek from Ruby's knife has scabbed over, but the edges look red and angry. It's probably infected. I'm sure that won't make her any more pleasant to be around.

'Sorry,' I mumble as I gulp down some water. 'I've never been a quick riser.'

'Whatever. We're going hunting.' Cleo has numerous weapons strapped to her small frame and looks ready for action. 'We saw a fire up there.' She points towards a cliff in the distance near the forest. Sure enough, there's a fire glowing brightly there. I'm disgusted at their stupidity. What idiot was so prepared to give away their location to everyone in the arena, just for a little heat?

Ruby, sitting beside the fire a few metres away, raises her eyebrows. 'Who said you were coming, Cleo? Someone has to guard our stuff.'

'Why me? I had to stay here earlier!' Cleo is furious at the suggestion that she might not get to hunt down other human beings.

'Yeah and you got to kill someone right? So it worked out well for you!' Lex smiles brightly at her as he packs food and water into a backpack.

I follow suit, and sling my bow and arrows over my shoulder. My dagger is still safely tucked in my belt. The other three argue over who should stay behind.

'I don't mind staying, you guys,' I pipe up. The last thing I want to do right now is be involved in any more deaths – I have seen enough for one day. Hell, for a lifetime. Also, the less time I have to spend with the other Careers, the better. I need some time alone to think about what I'm going to do next.

'Great!' Cleo says. 'Let's go get this fool.' She starts walking away without waiting for a reply from the others.

'Later.' Lex winks as he walks past. Ruby sighs and follows them wordlessly. I sink to the ground beside the cornucopia and watch their shadowy figures retreat into the distance. I never thought I'd be so relieved to be alone here.

Finally I have some time to think. Two of the careers are dead, and it wouldn't surprise me if Ruby and Cleo killed each other in the next day or so. I'd probably be better to get away from the group before that happens.

Then I hear footsteps. Soft footsteps moving quicky towards me from the other side of the cornucopia. Whoever that is probably hasn't seen me yet. Clutching my bow, I move as quietly and quickly as I can, relieved that I'm sitting where I am and not over beside the fire a few metres away, where I probably would have been seen already. I climb noiselessly into the mouth of the cornucopia and crouch there with my heart pounding, my bow loaded in preparation for whoever might appear.

A figure comes into view in front of me, but I can't tell who it is in this dim light. I take a deep breath and aim my arrow. Then her flaming red hair catches the light from the fire and I recognize her. It's the girl from District 8, the one who killed Mikai and ran away from Cleo.

She is picking quietly through our pile of supplies and loading food, water and other essentials into a backpack. When she turns for the pile of weapons, I lean out of the cornucopia and call out.

'Don't even think about it.'

She spins around and when she sees my bow and arrow trained on her, an expression of terror flits across her face. Her eyes dart from side to side, looking for a way out. I stretch the string of my bow, but can't bring myself to release.

'Get out of here,' I snap.

She looks confused. 'Why aren't you going to kill me?' she asks bluntly.

'Do you want me to kill you?' I say, exasperated by her delay. Why won't she just leave? I don't want to have to hurt her.

'Of course not! I just...I thought all of you careers were out for blood.'

'Then what are you doing sneaking into our camp?' I jump down from my perch and walk closer to her.

She looks in the direction of the cliff where the others have gone. 'I set a fire up there. I thought you guys would all go to check that out and I could steal some of your food and get myself some more weapons.'

'You set that fire?' I'm impressed at her plan. She was right to think that the others wouldn't pass up the oppurtunity to investigate that fire. 'We thought it was some stupid kid who didn't realize that they were advertising their location for all to see.'

She smiles. 'Yeah, well that's what I wanted you to think.'

I laugh. 'Very clever.'

'Thanks, but not really. You're here aren't you? So the plan didn't work perfectly.' She shakes her head and we're silent for a few moments. I don't fully know what to do next. 'Welllll...since you aren't going to kill me, I should probably get out of here before the others get back. I have a feeling they're probably not all like you.' She smiles slightly.

She's got that right. I think about Cleo and Ruby, and I blurt it out before I've even thought it through. 'Do you want to be allies with me?'

Her eyes widen in surprise. 'You already have allies,' she says slowly.

'I hate them. They're brutal.'

She laughs. 'The careers are always brutal, are they not? I'm sure you knew that before you teamed up with them.'

'It was just kind of...expected of me.' She looks thoughtful so I continue. 'We could take all of their supplies that we can carry and head for the forest before they get back. What do you think?'

'I'm not sure I can trust you.'

I shrug. 'I don't know how to prove that to you.' At that moment I hear an angry shout in the distance that sounds like Lex. They've probably gotten to the fire and found that there's nobody there. 'You need to decide soon, though. They're probably going to come back soon and they will be pissed that they found nothing.'

She stares intensely at me for a moment, then shrugs. 'Okay. Let's do it.' She sticks out her hand and I move closer to her and shake it firmly. 'Allies.' She smiles, then laughs loudly.

'What's so funny?' I ask, bemused.

'We don't even know each others names,' she snorts. 'Yet we've agreed to team up and kill other people together. Isn't this bizarre?'

I laugh. 'I'm Jude.'

'I'm Eva. Well Jude, we better pack up and get going.' She picks up the backpack she was loading when I surprised her and starts throwing more stuff into it. I do the same. A few minutes later we are walking towards the forest with our supplies.


	10. Chapter 10

We walk in the direction of the forest in companionable silence. The sky is beginning to lighten as morning approaches. Day two begins.

We can hear the Careers coming before we can see them, Cleo loudly berating the fact that there was nobody at the fire. Eva puts a finger to her lips and points up a little hill in the rock, where there is a few loose boulders we can hide behind. Eva's so tiny she can slot in between some small rocks without being seen, but for me at 5'10, hiding is more of a challenge. I crouch as low as I can and pray that the top of my head isn't peeping out over the rock. I bet the Capitol viewers are shouting at their screens, hoping the Careers will see us and they'll get a good gory fight.

Their voices come closer and closer until they're practically on top of us. I'm sweating and shaking like crazy. If they find us here, find out that I have defected, there is no doubt that they'll kill us. Ruby and Cleo are arguing loudly again – I'm definitely better off away from that alliance, it's getting more tense by the minute.

Fortunately, they pass us without incident. I peer over the top of the rock and fiddle with my bow thoughtfully. I could try to take them out now. I glance at Eva but she shakes her head furiously at me.

'Wait until one of them is alone,' she hisses. 'You'll only be able to hit one of them and the others will come after us once you get one. We can't take them all on. Let's just keep going for the forest.'

I nod. Once we can't hear them anymore, we return to our original path.

.

.

.

It's a relief when we finally reach the forest. Out in the canyon, I felt very exposed, but here there are plenty of places to hide. That said, lots of those hiding places are probably already occupied by the remaining tributes who fled to the forest yesterday. We definitely need to be vigilant. Eva leads the way, cIutching her spear, and I have my bow and arrow at the ready, constantly on the lookout for an attack. We walk deeper into the forest, treading quietly through the undergrowth, for at least an hour without seeing anybody.

'Aaagh!' We have just entered a small clearing when suddenly Eva flies into the air, swinging from an overhead branch by her foot. She hangs with her face at the level of mine, meaning the rope wrapped around her ankle is far too high for me to reach. 'Jude! Get me down, please!' Her voice is desperate. 'The person who set this trap is probably nearby!'

'I'll get you down!' I run to the base of the tree and start to climb frantically. I've reached the branch she's hanging from and taken out my knife to cut her down when I hear the sound of somebody running towards us.

'Quick!' Eva cries, panicked. 'They're coming, hurry!'

I saw through the thick rope as quickly as I can. It finally snaps and Eva crashes to the ground just as a blonde girl, I think she's from District 5, appears in the clearing. She's holding a set of knives, one of which she immediately flings in Eva's direction. She rolls out of the way and the knife sticks in the ground where her head was just seconds ago. I let fly an arrow, but because of my hurry it only glances the blonde on the shoulder. She cries out in pain but then throws her last knife at me. It embeds itself in my thigh, sending a searing pain all down my leg and causing me to tumble off the branch. I crash to the ground, but manage to hang on to my bow. Eva gets up and takes a running tackle at the blonde now that she is unarmed, knocking her to the ground. They tumble around for a few moments hitting each other.

The pain in my leg is almost unbearable. I shakily load another arrow into my bow and point it in their direction. Dammit they keep turning and switching places, I can't guarantee that I'm not going to hit Eva instead of her. 'Eva move!' I shout. She flings herself away from the girl and I finally have a clear shot. This arrow doesn't miss its mark, hitting her in the middle of the chest. She drops immediately and the cannon fires. I exhale and lie back on the ground.

Eva runs over and crouches beside me. 'Jude are you okay? Did she hit you?' She sees my leg, the knife sticking out and the blood trickling down it. 'Oh no!' she cries.

'Take it out. See how bad it is,' I say.

'This is going to hurt,' Eva says apologetically as she grasps the handle. I nod and she yanks it out quickly, bringing tears to my eyes, then sighs. 'It's pretty deep, Jude. If only we had something to stitch it up with.'

At that moment, I see the first silver parachute floating down, the first gift I've seen from a sponsor. Eva grabs it. 'A sterile suturing kit!' she crows. 'We can clean it out too so you don't get a nasty infection or anything.'

'Thank you, Finnick.' I blow a kiss into midair, assuming it'll be picked up by some camera. 'Can you stitch it up, Eva? Are you able to do that?'

'I'm from District 8, I've been sewing since I was a kid. How different can this be? Trust me, it's better than leaving it like it is.' She replies. 'Your mentor obviously thinks the same or why would he have sent this?' She's right, of course. Finnick would never have sent that set if he didn't think I really needed it.

I just nod, and she starts work, widening the rip in my pants around the wound and busily wiping it down with alcohol, preparing to stitch. Ouch. Ouch ouch. I wince. 'Can you talk to me while you do it, please!'

'Sure. What should we talk about?'

'Anything!'

'Okay! Well, will I tell you more about me?'

As she carefully stitches up my leg, I learn lots about my new ally. Eva is the daughter of the Mayor of District 8, she's sixteen and she has four brothers. She tells me details of her life in District 8, funny things that have happened, stories about her pets and her school, all in a soothing voice as she works. I barely notice the time passing and she's done before I know it.

'There.' She looks at my leg, satisfied. I look down and see she has done an excellent job, neat rows of stitches reducing the welt in my thigh to a narrow sliver of a wound. 'That shouldn't even scar too badly,' she says smugly.

'I probably won't need to worry about that for too long,' I say, popping two of the painkillers that I have found in the parachute package. The pain in my leg immediately recedes so much that I would hardly know anything had even happened to it. Capitol drugs are amazing. Back home nobody can really afford proper medicine, mostly relying on herbal remedies.

'Not if I have anything to say about it,' Eva replies. 'You saved my ass back there. If I'd been on my own I would be dead now. You could have run, saved yourself and not gotten a chunk taken out of your leg, but you didn't. Thank you.' She hugs me tightly.

'You're welcome.' We sit in silence for a while, Eva resting her head on my shoulder.

I wonder what the Careers did when they got back to camp and found that I was gone, along with a significant proportion of their supplies. I wonder if they're out looking for me.

Not looking. Hunting.


	11. Chapter 11

We stay in the clearing for the rest of the day, deciding against going further into the forest for now. When Eva suggests that we climb a tree and sit up there instead of being exposed in the clearing to anyone who might come along, I agree that this is the best thing to do. We climb up into a huge gnarled old tree and settle on a large bough about halfway up the tree, well off the ground and hidden from view by the leafy branches. We eat some crackers and jerky, and I note that we are running low on water. We have enough to do us for the rest of today, but tomorrow morning we'll have to try and find that river.

'Jude, why did you ally with the Careers?' Eva asks me in the late afternoon. 'You're not like them. You don't want to kill like they do.'

'Because I promised my boyfriend that I would,' as I say it, I know it sounds stupid. I have to clarify. I look Eva straight in the eye. 'I told him I'd ally with them to get me through the bloodbath, then kill them all the first chance I got.' At this stage, having abandoned my alliance with them already, I have no qualms saying this even though I know there are cameras on me.

'Oh. That's...interesting.'

'He thought it was my best chance of surviving.'

'Well you did get through the bloodbath. And you're still here. He must be pretty happy. Even though you haven't really followed through on that plan fully, they are still alive after all.'

I sigh. 'I just had to get away from them. They're so...brutal. And they're bound to turn on each other at any stage now, they've been arguing right from the start.' I pause. 'My sister was in the Games too, see. She allied with the careers and she got killed by another one of them.' Tears well up in my eyes and spill out. 'I don't want my mother to have to watch the same thing happen to me.'

Eva nods sympathetically and puts her arm around me. She is way tinier than I am, but it is still oddly makes me feel very safe to have her comforting me. Well, as safe as you can feel in the arena.

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Nothing else happens that day. We remain in our perch in the tree, sometimes talking, sometimes sitting in comfortable silence, listening to the birds sing and the wind rustle through the trees. There are no more cannons and we don't see or hear anybody else in the forest.

When night falls, once again the Capitol seal appears in the sky and the anthem blares out. I strain to see the sky through the dense foliage, even though since there have been no more cannons, probably the only face we'll be seeing is that of the District 5 girl who I killed. Unless we missed something.

Sure enough, the blonde girl's picture is the only one shown. I feel guilty momentarily, then harden my resolve. She was trying to kill Eva. What was I supposed to do, let her? No way. Eva must pick up on the way I'm feeling, because she squeezes my hand and smiles. 'Thank you, Jude. I know you didn't want to kill her.'

'She's the first person I've killed,' I admit. Although the District 12 boy kind of died because I threw that knife at him, it wasn't me that directly ended his life, it was Milo. This time, however, the blame lies fully with me, and I have to live with that. I shake my head. 'We should get some sleep now. We'll have to go look for some water tomorrow morning before we run out.'

We curl up in our sleeping bags on the huge branch. Eva's breathing rapidly becomes deep and level, indicating she is asleep, but I can't drift off. I wonder how things are at home. I hope my mother doesn't have to watch me in the Games alone since there's nobody else left at home with her. I hope Luke sits with her, even though everybody is supposed to watch the Games in their own home. When Nina was in the arena, we watched the mandatory viewing together every night, the three of us, Mom's hand gripping mine as tight as she could without breaking it, and me doing the same to Luke.

Mom buried her face in her hands on the fifth day, when the District 2 girl turned on Nina when they were out hunting. She couldn't watch, but I couldn't not watch. I watched the life blood pour out of my sister, cursing the Capitol with all the passion I had in me. The only thing I hated more than the Capitol was that sly District 2 girl. Her name was Adira and she went on to win. When she came to District 4 on her Victory Tour, smiling and waving at the friends and families of the people she killed, Luke had to physically grip my arm to stop me from running up to the stage and throttling her. I hated her.

Now that I think about it a little more, my immediate dislike for Cleo could have something to do with that. She resembles Adira a little, both having mousy brown hair and brown eyes, with sly, drawn little faces.

I drift off to sleep finally, slipping into dreams of killing Cleo and her turning into Adira beneath me. I dream of home, when Nina was still alive and we were all happy. I dream of Luke, of his embrace that makes it seem like everything is alright with the world even when it's not.

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The next morning when I wake up, Eva is already awake and rustling through our supplies.

'Good morning,' she says brightly when I sit up. 'We're down to our last bit of water.' She waves the bottle in front of me, the small amount left in it sloshing around the bottom.

'We should go look for that stream,' I say. At that moment, another silver parachute floats down and I reach out and catch it. Water. Enough to last us at least two days, if we're careful.

'Scratch that plan, I guess,' Eva says.

'Yeah. Finnick must think it's best if we don't go wandering around too much. The Careers must be hunting.'

'He seems like a good mentor. Mine hasn't sent me anything.'

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We don't stray too far from the clearing that day. Eva inspects the wound on my thigh and pronounces it much improved.

Then she disappears for a while, taking my bow and arrow with her and promising not to go out of earshot. If she encounters anything I want to know about it. I listen carefully for trouble, but she returns safely after about a half an hour, triumphantly clutching a rabbit.

For a mayor's daughter she is certainly resourceful. Even though I'd have no problem shooting them, I wouldn't have a clue how to gut and clean an animal the way she can. We make a small fire and cook the rabbit, eating most of it between us hungrily and stowing the rest for later. It's the first fresh food we've had in days.

Once we're done, I put out the fire and try to remove all evidence of it being there, scattering the ashes and kicking some dirt and leaves over the remains. We climb back into the tree. Night soon falls and the Capitol seal appears in the sky. No deaths today.

The viewers won't like that. It's highly likely the gamemakers will put in some kind of intervention to make sure there is some action soon. I don't even want to think about what kind of intervention that might be.


	12. Chapter 12

I wake up in the middle of the night, confused. Water is pouring down on me and every few seconds there are flashes of light that illuminate the area. A storm.

The gamemakers must have decided to shake things up by sending this bad storm, trying to drive us together looking for shelter or something. Eva shouts something at me, but I can't hear her over the pounding rain and crashes of thunder. There is a massive cracking sound nearby, and I turn to see a large branch breaking off a nearby tree, burning brightly. It must have been struck by lightning. I panic. We need to find some shelter, and fast.

Just as I have this thought, something hits our tree and the branch above us falls, a burning ball of flame. I jump out of the way, but Eva doesn't have time to react before the burning branch hits her and brings her to the ground with it. She lies where she lands, unmoving beneath the flames. I climb down as quickly as I can, and push the branch off her. To my horror, her jumpsuit has caught fire. I frantically roll her around on the soaking ground, trying to put out the flames. I don't understand how they're still burning so furiously with the amount of rain that's falling.

They must be some sort of synthetic fire caused by the lightning manufactured by the gamemakers, unable to be extinguished by water. It wouldn't be the first time they have manipulated the elements to their own use. As quick as I can, I strip off my jumpsuit and wrap Eva in it tightly, trying to smother the flames. This works, thankfully, but it has taken too long. Little remains of her jumpsuit, and the skin beneath looks red raw and blistered. Not much remains of my own clothing either after my attempts to extinguish the fire. I stand dumbly beside Eva's inert frame in my underwear,my hair stuck to my head with rain.

What do I do now? I can't go back up into the tree, that's clearly not safe. Everyone knows a tree is the worst place to be when there's lightning. I can't go anywhere, because I can't leave Eva here alone and unconscious, but I certainly can't carry her, small as she is. Not for any distance worth anything anyway.

Then I realize my weapons are up in that tree. If somebody were to come along now I'd be dead, an easy target. I run to the tree and climb up, relaxing a little when I seize my bow and arrows. I am no longer utterly defenceless. I grab Eva's spear and dagger too. I don't know where my own knife is, I must have thrown it aside as I frantically stripped off my clothes.

I climb back down to Eva, take her arms and drag her to the centre of the clearing, as far away from the trees as possible, in case any more branches or even whole trees fall. Moving her can't hurt her any worse than she already is – I hope. A few times I hear what could be a cannon, but could just be more thunder. With the noise of wind, rain and thunder, I have no hope of hearing anybody coming through the forest the way I usually can. I stand beside Eva, my bow at the ready, turning constantly, trying to keep an eye on every angle of the clearing, which is illuminated every few moments by a flash of lightning.

Clearly I'm doing a shoddy job, because when I'm grabbed from behind I haven't even noticed them coming. Whoever it is flings me to the ground a few feet away roughly, far stronger than I am. The rain stops abruptly. Obviously the aim of this storm was to bring tributes together, and that aim has been achieved to the gamemakers' satisfaction. Now they don't want the noise of the storm to drown out any of the action, or anything terrible for the viewers like that.

I scramble to my feet, grab the spear because my bow will be useless close range, and run a little way into the trees, desperate to get away. Within seconds I'm tackled again and knocked to the ground, losing my grip on the spear. The person spins me around to lie on my back, but when I see his face, I don't even recognize him. I don't remember him from training, the interviews, anything. I'm surprised he's lasted this long after apparently making so little of an impression.

The boy straddles me, pinning me to the ground so I can't move. 'Did you kill her? You killed her! You killed Ash!' He yells furiously in my face, leaning over me and holding down my arms with his hands.

'I don't know who that is!' I struggle furiously but I can't budge from beneath him.

His face contorts in fury. 'District 5, blonde. She set traps around here - you're the only people I've seen around here, it must have been you!' He removes one hand from its grip on me to retrieve his knife from his belt, just for a second, but that's all I need. My hand is free. I do the first thing I can think of – I punch him as hard as I can, right in the crotch. He doubles over in pain and I push him off me. It was a cheap shot but I didn't have much of a choice.

I scrabble for the spear and turn back to him quickly. He's already launching himself at me again. I don't even have to do anything, I just crouch, pointing the spear up in his direction and he lands on it, unable to stop himself in time. Impaled by his own momentum. He coughs, spraying me with blood.

His expression is so surprised it almost breaks my heart. I push him as hard as I can in the opposite direction to prevent him from falling on top of me. I pull the spear out and kneel beside him, looking at his face, which is contorted in pain and fear. 'I'm so sorry,' I whisper, fighting back tears. 'I'm sorry for Ash too. For everything.' His blue eyes move to look at me and, to my surprise, his hand finds mine.

'Not your fault,' he murmurs. Then his eyes flicker closed and his hand slackens in mine. The cannon fires and I burst into tears. I gently stroke his blonde hair, slick with rain, off his face. He looks peaceful. I rest my head on his silent chest for a moment, weeping for this boy I never knew and never will.

I realise that I need to move so that the hovercraft can take the boy's body away. Feeling callous, I pull my spear from his chest. I can't afford to lose a weapon, and everything left with the tribute goes into the hovercraft with them. This in mind, I cut his backpack from him too, in case he has any supplies that might be of use to me. Then I return to the clearing, back to Eva's side. Within seconds a hovercraft appears overhead and I watch through the trees as his limp body ascends into the sky, which is now streaked with light. I think of his family watching what just happened, knowing he'll be shipped back to them in a coffin. I hope they can forgive me the way he did.

I snap back into the here and now. With the boy's attack, I nearly forgot about Eva's injuries. Now that the sun is beginning to shine into the clearing, I can see the extent of what has happened. Most of her body is burned, some just red but some appears worse, with bloody looking blisters. Her leg is twisted at an angle beneath her in a way that can only mean it broke when she fell from the tree. 'Eva,' I say urgently, shaking her but getting no response. She's breathing shallowly and very quickly. Her lips are tinged blue and her pulse is racing when I feel it in her neck.

I don't think there's anything I can do. I don't think I can save her.

'Finnick,' I whimper, stroking her face gently. 'Finnick, what do I do? Tell me please.' My voice has dropped almost to a whisper.


	13. Chapter 13

I stay crouched beside Eva for an indeterminate amount of time, not knowing what to do. I've never been around sick people, never had call to be. Even if I had lived with a healer, burns aren't that common an injury in District 4, where we spend much of our time in the water and, the weather being warm as it is, most people rarely bother with fires in their homes.

Eventually, a silver parachute floats down to me. Finally! Finnick is going to give me some clue of what I should do to help Eva. I grab it out of the air and impatiently rip the package open. What falls out is so tiny that it falls to the ground before I even notice it's there. For a minute I think the package is empty, and wonder what the hell Finnick could be thinking. Then I see the glint among the leaves on the ground.

I bend down and pick it up, dusting off the grime from the forest floor as I do so. It's a syringe, a small one with a thick greyish liquid inside. Medicine to save Eva! 'Thank you, thank you,' I crow, unable to contain my delight. This must have cost a fortune, lots of different sponsors must have banded together to pay for this one item.

There's no name on it, just an instruction to give it into a muscle. Not that I'd know the name of any Capitol medicine anyway, and I certainly wouldn't argue with what Finnick has sent me. Not wasting any more time, I jam it into Eva's thigh and press the plunger down fully. I sit back for a minute, wondering how long it will take to work. The answer is, not long.

It's not long until Eva's body locks up completely, her back arched as far as it can go, then begins to jerk horribly.

It's not long until she lies completely still, her chest not rising and falling the way it was just moments ago.

It's not long until her cannon fires. Because that wasn't medicine, it was poison. And I have killed her.

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I can't believe it. I just can't believe that Finnick would have me kill my one friend here. I don't understand. I didn't even know something like that would be allowed. Surely sending your tribute poison gives them an unfair advantage? I'm shaking my head, unable to come to terms with this completely unforeseen turn of events. Then I hear something. Voices, only a few hundred metres away.

Voices that I recognize. Lex's deep drawl. Cleo's irritating whine. Ruby's commanding tones. And they're coming this way. I grab the boy's backpack and all of my weapons before fleeing up our tree. Not our tree anymore, I guess, but my tree, with no more Eva to share it with. I have only been up there a minute when the three of them come into the clearing. I try to quiet my ragged breathing.

'I'm telling you, this is where that boy was lifted up from. Not long ago, whoever did it must still be here,' Cleo is saying loudly as they emerge from the trees.

'We heard another cannon, too,' Lex points out. 'So maybe that was whoever took him out.'

They see Eva's body and stop.

'There, see, it must have been her. She killed him, but he injured her so badly she died anyway. So that's two more down.' Ruby sounds almost bored. I hope more than anything that the others listen to her and don't go looking around here more thoroughly.

'It's the redhead who killed Mikai!' Cleo realizes. 'Damn, I wanted to kill her myself.'

'If she killed him,' Lex says slowly, looking around, 'Where are the weapons she did it with?' Darn, darn, darn. I thank my lucky stars that I had time to get up this tree. With its thick leafy branches, I am well concealed from the clearing. As long as they don't look too hard. Still, I have my bow at the ready. At least I have the advantage of my height perched in this tree, well out of reach of Lex's sword. I aim for Ruby, because she is the only one who could take me out from down there if she saw me, with her own bow. I could shoot her now. Hell, I could probably kill them all. But I just can't bring myself to do it. I have caused enough deaths today.

'Lex, they probably went up with the body!' Ruby replies impatiently. 'Can we please just move on and find that little shark?' I assume that little shark is me, the sly thing from the fishing district who dared to break our alliance. If she only knew how close I am to her right now.

Fortunately for me, Ruby seems to still have control of this little band of tributes, despite her apparent lack of intelligence. Clearly her looks have pulled her through so far in life. So even though Lex and Cleo look around suspiciously, certainly not as convinced as she is that there is nothing to find in this part of the forest, they follow her out of the clearing, and I can finally breath again.

Once they have cleared out, the hovercraft comes to take Eva's body. As her body is lifted into the sky, I kiss the fingers of my right hand, curl it into a fist and place it over my heart. I close my eyes, squeezing the tears out. I have cried more in the last 3 days than I have in my whole life.

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By this time, it is late afternoon. It is extremely lucky that this arena has not been cold, given my almost total lack of clothing at the moment. Funnily enough, I can't even bring myself to care that all of Panem can now see me half naked. What does it matter?

I remain perched in the tree and sort through my supplies. The boy had a bottle of water in his pack and some crackers to add to my collection. Thankfully, none of our stuff in the tree was damaged in the storm, so I am still well enough stocked. I have a dismal meal of crackers and leftover rabbit from yesterday. No Eva around now to catch another one, I think miserably. More importantly, no Eva to chat and laugh with while we cook and eat, to make this arena feel a little bit safer.

The other deaths I have caused have upset me, there is no doubt about that, but this one is different, it is so much worse. Eva was my friend, probably one of the best friends I have ever had in my life despite only knowing each other for such a short time. I guess it's because we each understood exactly what the other was going through. Now she's gone and I am alone.

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Night soon falls and the anthem blares. I crane my neck to look at the sky. I need to know if anyone else died during that storm, if those cannons I thought I heard were in fact cannons or if they were just thunder. The first face is that of the boy I killed. Ash's district partner from 5. Then Eva. Then one more – the girl from District 12. I wonder if the Careers got her on their trek through the woods, or if it was somebody else. Perhaps she was injured by a branch or hit by lightning. I suppose it doesn't make a difference to me, other than the fact that it is one less person in my way to prevent me from going home. The only way I'll ever know is if I win these Games and watch the recap from the victor's chair.

I do a quick count on my fingers. Sixteen have died so far and there are only eight tributes left. This games is moving quickly compared to others I have seen. We have only been in the arena for 4 days. The Capitol hate for the Games to end too fast, as much as they hate them to move too slowly with no action and bloody deaths. After all, they look forward to this all year, it might as well last a few weeks. Maybe now, to prolong the Games, they will leave us alone for a few days and if I just stay put here I'll be safe. I can only hope.

Now that they're down to the final eight, they will be doing interviews with our families. This should take up enough air time that they won't need to mess with us too much. I remember being interviewed when Nina got into the final eight, trying to feign confidence in my sister's abilities even though I was sure she would die, to try to get her as much sponsorship as possible. Not that it did any good.

I hope my mother does the same for me. She'll try her best, but I know it will be hard for her to pretend like everything is going to be okay. I have no doubt but that Luke will wow the audience, since he looks a little like Finnick, and although probably not as charismatic, he does have the same easy charm. He's never had any trouble getting people to like him.

I want to see him so badly, my heart hurts thinking about it. I just want to go home; to my mother, to Luke, to my life. Not this terrible place where nothing is as it seems and nobody can be trusted. I curl into my sleeping bag and close my eyes, wishing that I could wake up back home in my own bed.


	14. Chapter 14

The next few days are uneventful. No cannons, no faces in the sky at nightfall. I'm surprised the Careers haven't hunted anybody down yet. Whatever tributes are left must be well hidden. I try to remember who is left, but other than the Careers, me and, surprisingly, that little twelve year old girl from district 11, I can't think who has not died. I definitely didn't pay enough attention to my fellow tributes back in the Capitol.

I don't know what it is that I'm doing that is so fantastic, but I'm showered with sponsorship gifts over these days. Maybe my lack of clothing has been popular with the Capitol folk. I receive a full picnic basket chock full of bread, cheese and fresh meat, lots of water, even some chocolate. On day six, somebody is also kind enough to send me some new clothes: light stretchy pants and a loose shirt, with a wide leather belt, all a light browny material that has an unusual sheen. They are far more comfortable and practical than the jumpsuit supplied by the Gamemakers.

Putting them on makes me realize how filthy I am. I have been in this arena for 6 days now, and I haven't bathed once. I don't think my being battered by rain during that storm counts as washing. Now I am covered in a layer of grime, all of the good work done by my prep team in the Capitol cancelled out. My usually silky hair is now matted with grease, and just touching it makes me wince. If only I knew where the stream was. Still, I don't really feel happy about the idea of leaving the safety of this clearing, where I definitely have an edge on anybody who might wander in. So I stay put and wait for something to happen.

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The sun rises on day eight in the arena and no more deaths have occurred. I have a sense of foreboding. Surely something will happen today – the viewers won't be happy with the dull few days that have gone by. I feel like I may have to move soon, so I pack food and water into one of the backpacks, tuck a knife into my belt and ready my bow and arrows. I sit in silence in the tree, listening intently to the sounds of the forest around me for any changes.

Halfway through the morning, another silver parachute floats down. A small package this time. It's a mussel, a clam, whatever you want to call it. One of those ugly black shellfish containing a squishy little creature, which are considered a delicacy in District 4. Well, by everyone except me. I have always hated them. Only one person could have sent me this, and it makes me smile.

It reminds me of the day I had my first kiss. I was only thirteen and, as I did most days, I was spending the day at his house next to mine while my mother worked. He was eating a huge bowl filled with mussels that his father had illegally fished while I looked on in disgust.

'Ugh, so disgusting. They smell so bad, Luke,' I complained as he expertly picked the little creatures from their shells using another shell like a tongs.

'But they taste sooooo good,' he retorted, licking his lips exaggeratedly. Then he cracked open the next shell and his eyes widened. 'Wow,' he murmured.

'What is it?' I asked, my curiosity aroused. In response he held up a small white thing. I looked a little bit closer, then gasped. 'A pearl!'

'Yeah...it's really uncommon to find them in a mussel like this. There's usually special mussels and oysters that they come from and they're farmed and sent straight to District 1.'

'It is so pretty,' I said in wonder.

He looked at me and smiled. 'I want you to have it,' he said, handing it to me.

'Because I'm more precious to you than a pearl?' I joked. He just nodded, leaned in and kissed me gently. From then on, there was no doubt in my mind but that we would be together forever. Or at least until one of us got thrown into the Hunger Games.

I can only assume this gift came from Luke, making sure that I know he still loves me and thinks I can win. In response, I just lift that very pearl he gave me that day on the chain around my neck where it currently lies, my district token, and kiss it lightly.

I crack the shell open with my knife, just to be sure that I am not completely mistaken and it actually contains something valuable. As I thought, it's just the squishy thing in there. 'Nothing more valuable to me right now than your love,' I murmur, stroking the rough outside of the shell gently. Then I fling the ugly thing as hard as I can into the forest and smirk. No way am I hungry enough to eat that.

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In the late afternoon, the sound of trumpets blares through the arena, followed by an announcement by Claudius Templesmith, the legendary Hunger Games announcer. He congratulates us final eight tributes, then says that tomorrow morning there will be a feast. A feast to draw together the remaining tributes who have probably been driven half mad by starvation. Well, right now I don't need anything from that feast. I have enough food to keep me going, enough that I don't need to go back into the thick of things like that first day at the cornucopia bloodbath, risking my life every second.

That said, I could use this to my advantage. I have ten arrows left in my quiver. There are only seven tributes left to kill, leaving me three spare even if they all turn up at the feast. All I have to do is go to a place where I'll have a good view of the cornucopia, hide, and wait for everyone to arrive – if they do arrive. Then take them down from a distance with my arrows. The Careers will definitely be there, looking for easy prey who are desperate and weak from starvation. My heart is pounding and I am shaking with anticipation. I can do this, I could be out of this arena very soon, maybe even tomorrow, if this plan works. I have to do this.

Once again, there are no faces in the sky at nightfall. I can't afford to go to sleep, in case I don't wake up in time to set up somewhere with a clear view of the cornucopia before the others start arriving. So I just sit in the tree and eat most of my remaining food. I packed my things earlier in the day, so I am already prepared to leave. When I estimate that it is about midnight, I start the trek back to the cornucopia.

**Please review it would mean a lot to me! :)**


	15. Chapter 15

I have grown used to the cover and protection that the forest offers, so I feel anxious leaving it for the exposure of the canyon again – alone this time. I decide not to walk the most direct route back to the cornucopia, as this is probably the way the others would go too. Instead, I walk a slight semicircle, ending up on a cliff ledge overlooking the wide open space where the cornucopia stands. Come morning, I'll have an excellent view of the feast. Whoever is down there will probably have an excellent view of me too, but I just have to hope that won't matter. I lie on my stomach looking over the side.

There is no longer any camp near the cornucopia, where I originally set up with the Careers on the first night. That feels like a long time ago now. I wonder where they moved to, or if they are even all still together.

I have been peering over the side for quite a while, searching for any signs of movement, when light begins to streak the sky. Dawn is coming, yet nobody else has arrived for the feast. Have I grossly misjudged this situation, I wonder. Is anybody actually coming or was I just a fool to leave the forest? Then I see a flicker of movement the opposite side of the cornucopia to the forest. I can't be sure, but I think it's the twelve year old from 11. My heart sinks. I just don't know if I will be able to bring myself to kill her. She hides in a tiny cave a little way away, awaiting the onset of the feast just like me. She looks even smaller than when the Games first began, she has obviously been finding it hard to scavenge food.

As the arena begins to light up, I notice something interesting about my new clothes. They were a light brown when I sat in the tree, but now that I lie on this reddish rock, they have adopted that colour. Some kind of camouflage attire. Hopefully that will help stop the others from noticing me up here.

Soon, the rocky ground in front of the cornucopia slides open and a huge table lifts out from the gaping hole in the ground. It is laden down with food – delicious looking Capitol dishes with steam rising off them. My mouth begins to water and I find it very difficult not to jump over the edge and race to the buffet. The little girl from 11 obviously feels the same – she runs over and starts grabbing full containers and shoving them into her backpack. I'm so focused on her that I don't see the boy until he grabs her from behind and snaps her neck. He has a smug look on his face as the cannon fires. He takes her backpack and continues to load it with food.

This time, I see the others coming. Lex and Cleo creep up on the boy, one on each side. I wonder where Ruby is, maybe she's keeping lookout for them. The boy sees Lex and a look of horror crosses his face. He turns and tries to run, but sees Cleo standing in his way. She smiles and waggles her fingers at him in a sarcastic wave, brandishing a sword in her other hand. He looks frantically from side to side, then drops to his knees. I can't hear his words, but it is clear that he's pleading with them to spare his life. As if there's a chance of that happening. All it takes is one swipe of Cleo's sword and his cannon fires.

What happens next takes me by surprise. Lex raises his hand in the air, I assume to high-five Cleo. She slaps his hand with hers, then, quick as lightning, jams her sword in his torso. My jaw drops as Lex crumples to the ground. He lands face down and his cannon fires. I was right, Cleo is just like that bitch Adira, turning on those who trust her. She has just made this very easy for me. Without hesitation, I take aim and fire. My arrow hits her in the centre of her back as she looks over the feast table, and she lands sprawled over a suckling pig.

Her cannon fires. Unlike the other kills I have made in this arena, all this one gives me is a sense of satisfaction. I feel no guilt whatsoever.

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I remain perched on the cliff for at least a few hours, but nobody else turns up. After a while, the table is withdrawn into the ground and all of the beautiful food with it. I had so badly wanted to go down and take some, but stopped myself for fear of a trap. It's nearly a relief when it is taken away and the temptation is gone.

I wonder where Ruby is, and why she didn't come looking for Lex. A while later, I hear a cannon. Could it be Ruby? Whoever it is, it's another tribute down. I don't really know what to do with myself now the feast is over. Should I return to the forest or wait here for somebody to show up? These Games seem unlikely to go on for much longer with so few left. I'm probably better off staying here where I can see people coming.

That afternoon, a silver parachute floats down to me. It's a couple of Capitol caffeine pills. Apparently high flying folk in the Capitol take them on a regular basis, as they remove the need for sleep for days at a time. That must allow lots of time for picking ridiculous outfits and...what else do Capitol people do? Other than enjoying watching kids fight to the death, I don't really know.

These are an excellent gift. Now that I'm in this exposed area I certainly can't afford to close my eyes for a second. I pop two of them into my mouth and swallow them with a little water. I instantly feel energized, as though I could run for miles without becoming tired.

Night falls and the Capitol seal appears in the sky accompanied by the blaring of the anthem as usual. Tonight there are enough tributes in the sky to make up for the last few quiet days. First Lex, then Cleo. Next is the boy from 3 who was killed by Cleo. The boy from 10 – that must be who the last cannon was for. Then the little girl from 11.

Only three tributes left. I'm really in with a chance of winning now. I sit quietly and wait for something, anything, to happen.

.

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**Please review, I'll love you forever :D Also, HAPPY ST PATRICKS DAY!**


	16. Chapter 16

Dawn has come when a shrill scream breaks the deathly silence of the arena. I jump to my feet, bow loaded, and attempt to look to all sides. I can't locate the source of the scream. Then I see her, sprinting towards the cornucopia as though her life depended on it. I have the string of my bow pulled back, ready to fire an arrow through her heart, when something knocks her to the ground. She is only about a hundred feet from the cliff at this stage and I can see that she was pounced on by an animal. Several of them have been chasing her, who knows how long for.

The one that knocked her down takes hold of her leg and she screams in agony. Another appears from behind her and bites into her neck, silencing her. Her cannon fires. My stomach lurches as they rip her body apart and I wonder how many other tributes have suffered a similar fate. Who knows how many of those cannon blasts I have heard have been due to something like this? I've probably been very lucky not to have encountered any dangerous animals so far.

I think they are wild cats, possibly cougars. I wouldn't know for sure because I have never seen any animal like this before. We don't have any kind of wild cats in District 4. Also, it's quite possible that they are some kind of mutt created by the Capitol that nobody but the Gamemakers has seen before, maybe with special abilities an ordinary animal wouldn't have. I'd really rather not find out what they are capable of.

There are three of them now hovering around the girl's body. They look bigger than any wild cat should be, with razor sharp claws a few inches long. With liquid movements, I send arrows in the direction of the animals. One, two, both hit through the eye and drop immediately. The third I miss, and it turns in my direction, baring its long sharp teeth. It bounds in the direction of the cliff, dodging the arrows I sent its way, and I have a brief moment of panic wondering if it will be able to climb up to me – if it is a mutt, that's probably an ability they would give it for this arena.

Then an arrow sails from behind me, taking down the huge animal. I spin around, bow at the ready. Ruby stands looking at me, bow in hand but I notice that her quiver is empty. Funny that she used her last arrow to kill the animal, when she could have simply killed me with it. The Gamemakers would have had to call off the animals then. They would have been no danger to her because she would have been the victor – there has to be a victor, they can't be ripped apart by animals at the end leaving the Capitol with nobody to fawn and gush over.

She must want to kill me in a more inventive manner. Maybe for the last kill in the arena she thinks an arrow through the heart or brain would just be too boring, or too humane.

The days in the arena have not been kind to Ruby. Her icy blonde hair is matted to her head and she is smeared with dirt. The mark Cleo made on her cheek on that first day in the arena has healed with an ugly jagged scab. Despite this, she is still pretty, but the look of hatred on her face mars her beauty far more than any of the injuries she has received here.

She limps a little closer and smiles sweetly at me. 'Well hi there, Jude! How have you been doing?'

'I've been great, thanks,' I reply, an equally false smile on my own face. 'Nice little spot this, isn't it? Awesome wildlife.'

'Amazing scenery too, just gorgeous,' she drawls. 'Now it's nothing personal, Jude, but I'm going to have to kill you now.'

I only just have time to grab my knife out of my belt before she jumps on top of me. That limp of hers sure isn't slowing her down any. We roll around, trying to get the upper hand, for a minute, but she is definitely stronger and manages to pin me down. I'm coughing uncontrollably from inhaling the dust we raised during the tussle and she slaps me across the face.

Her face is triumphant as she looks down at me. 'See, maybe if you hadn't deserted our alliance so early I wouldn't get so much pleasure out of killing you now,' she hisses. 'Maybe I would have made it quick and easy for you. But now? Now I am going to enjoy myself.' She whips out a knife with a malicious smirk on her face. I'm nearly sure it's the same knife she threatened Cleo with, what feels like years ago now. She scrapes it along the soft skin near my eye, and drops of blood roll down my face like tears.

Unwilling to surrender to whatever horrendous death she has planned for me, I turn my head and bite her hand as hard as I can, causing her to rear back in pain and giving me an oppurtunity to knock her off me. I back away from her, pulling myself along the dusty ground with my hands, until I am right beside the edge of the cliff. Her eyes glint menacingly as she moves towards me again, clutching her knife. She is holding it with her other hand now, the one I bit is now bleeding heavily, I note with satisfaction.

'Well, Ruby, maybe if you hadn't been such a bitch from day one then maybe I wouldn't take so much pleasure in killing you now,' I say sweetly, trying to stop my voice from trembling so she won't know how terrified I truly am.

She snarls and dives for me. I scoot sideways and swing my leg around to trip her. For a moment, she teeters on the edge of the cliff, arms waving, an expression of horror on her face, then she falls. A scream followed by a thud when she hits the bottom. It's only about twenty or thirty feet – not enough to kill her unless she lands directly on her head or something. Sure enough, there is no cannon. I look over the edge. She is lying on her back, limbs sprawled everywhere.

'I don't really take too much pleasure in this, to be honest, Ruby. Or any pleasure at all for that matter,' I say, even though I know she can't hear me. The people watching in the districts can hear me, though, and I want them to know that I am not a cold blooded killer – I'm just doing what I have to do to survive. Then I shoot her with an arrow and the cannon fires.

Trumpets sound and then Claudius Templesmith's voice booms through the arena. 'Ladies and gentlemen, I am pleased to present the victor of the 69th Hunger Games, Jude Parren of District 4!'

I drop to my knees and close my eyes in relief. I have won. I can go home.

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><p><strong>Please review! I'd appreciate it greatly :)<strong>


	17. Chapter 17

It isn't long until the hovercraft comes for me, but by the time it does I am weeping uncontrollably. Now that the Games are over, that I have won and will be able to go home to District 4, all I have dreamed of since Minnie called my name on reaping day, I realize that this might no longer be what I want. After the things that I've seen and done here in the arena, will life ever be the same again? I find it hard to believe that I can ever be the person I was before.

When the hovercraft comes, I am slumped in a heap on the dusty ground crying my eyes out. For the first time since entering this arena, I am free. Free to show my true emotions, because I no longer have to worry about looking strong to win over sponsors. All of the anger and despair that built up over the long days in the arena is now bubbling over.

The ladder comes down for me to be lifted up, but I can't even raise my arm to grasp it. Eventually, they send down one of the claw-like devices that they use to retrieve the dead bodies – because they obviously can't grab a ladder. I'm grasped firmly around the waist and lifted high into the air, tears still streaming down my face, mixing with the blood that Ruby drew in those last minutes.

Once the metal opening has slid shut below me, the claw releases me and I thud to the ground. I guess it isn't designed to carry living people and deposit them gently, since its usual passengers are the dead tributes.

I just sit there for a moment, unsure of what to do, then a Capitol attendant enters the little room and politely offers me some refreshment. I stare at her dumbly and she holds out a small tray with a single glass on it. A frosted glass containing orange juice, with a single straw with a frilly collar. So beautiful, so civilised looking. Can it be that the Capitol who spend so much time making even their beverages look so pretty are the same people who enjoy watching us fight to the death? Rage courses through me.

I knock the tray out of her hand and drag her to the ground by her jet black hair. She shrieks. 'You think what I need right now is 'refreshment'?' I hiss as she whimpers. 'What I need is for the last few weeks of my life not to have happened! For you Capitol people not to exist!' By the last few words I am screaming in her face. Several peacekeepers burst into the room and haul me off her before I can do any real damage. I kick and struggle furiously, shouting obscenities at them. A man in the white coat of a doctor, contrasting oddly with his bright purple hair, strolls in, smiles at me, then jams a needle into my thigh, and everything fades to black.

.

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When I awaken, I have no idea how long I have been out for, or where I am. I blink furiously as the bright light assaults my eyes. Once they have adjusted, I look around me. I am in a bleak white hospital room, several wires running out of me attached to various machines and drips. I raise a hand to my face and marvel at its clean skin and manicured nails filed into neat ovals. I touch the spot beside my eye where Ruby cut me and it feels silky smooth, just like the rest of my skin. My hair is no longer the matted mess it was for those last few days in the arena, it has been restored to its former silky waves. While I have been asleep, I have been brought back to the ideal of Capitol beauty. Now that I am a victor, I am something to be aspired to. It's best if I don't appear damaged. How can they not understand that the worst scars are inside me now– and there is no easy way to fix those, no magic cream or medicine that even the Capitol can come up with.

I struggle to sit up, but I just end up getting myself more tangled in all my wires. I slump back down in the bed, defeated. Then the door slides open and I look up eagerly, but I don't recognize the girl who comes in. She has red hair pulled back harshly off her face and wears a red uniform. She looks just like the servers we had in the Capitol before the Games, but I never payed too much attention to them then. I guess I was too preoccupied with what was ahead to think about them.

As she leaves a tray of food in front of me, I grab her arm. 'Where am I?' I ask, but she just shakes her head, a fearful expression in her eyes. 'When can I get out of here, please tell me,' I beg. Again, she remains silent, but gestures to her mouth. I have no idea what she means. She picks up a spoon and gently forces it into my hand, then she is gone. Despite her silence, I wish she hadn't left. I've never felt so alone in my life.

I glance at the tray she brought me and I am distinctly unimpressed. A bowl of clear broth, a small serving of apple sauce and a glass of water. Is that it? This is my reintroduction to the Capitol? I take a few spoons and find that I fill up rapidly. I must have been asleep for quite a while, my stomach shrunken from disuse. I wonder if this is normal practice, is every victor kept like this? From watching the Games in the past, I know there is usually a delay of a few days between the victor being announced and when they are presented to the audience. It gives the prep teams and stylists time to transform the injured shell of a person back into something the Capitol will cheer for. On the outside at least.

I finish eating and slump back on my pillows. I feel something cold trickle into my arm and I drift off again.

.

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Next time I awaken, there are no longer any wires trailing from me. I sit up easily and see clothes lying across the end of the bed. It must be time for me to get up, so I do. I find it a little upsetting putting back on the clothes I was wearing in the arena. It's made marginally more bearable by the fact that they have been washed – at least they are no longer flecked with Ruby's blood mixed with my own.

Once I'm dressed, I quietly slide open the door and slip out into the hallway. I hear voices coming from an open door at the other end of the corridor and I run towards them. I burst into the large chamber and they all cheer. Finnick strides over and hugs me so tightly I am lifted off the ground. 'I knew you could do it,' he whispers in my ear. Minnie pats my head and just keeps saying she is 'ever so happy to see me!' My prep team ooh and ah over my flawless skin and nails and seem genuinely thrilled that I am alive.

Finnick takes me by the hand and leads me down the corridor to an elevator that whizzes up to the lobby of the training centre. So that's where I have been for the last few days – deep underground, below the place where I came with 23 other kids to train, all of whom are now dead. I can feel my throat closing over and I fight back tears. Finnick must pick up on the way I'm feeling, because he squeezes my hand as we ride up to the fourth floor. Of course he would understand, hasn't he been through the same thing? He knows more than anyone what I'm going through right now.

A lavish feast waits for me in the District 4 quarters and I eat hungrily. Finnick says nothing until I have finished eating and the food has been cleared away by more of those servers in red uniforms, but just his presence is comforting.

'Jude, I feel like I need to explain...' he eventually says haltingly, his sea green eyes meeting my own.

'Explain what, Finnick?'

'Explain why I did some of the things I did. Sent you the things I did.'

I shake my head. 'Not now. Maybe when we're back home and things have gone back to normal.' Even as I say it I know it sounds wrong. Things are never going to go back to normal. I know this in my heart, and the look in Finnick's eyes confirms it.

He squeezes my hand. 'Everything I did was to help you. And I'm not going to stop helping you now that this is over.'

'The Hunger Games are never really over, are they, Finnick.' It's not even a question.

'No, Jude. They aren't,' he says sadly. I sigh and we sit there in silence until my prep team burst in to beautify me for the Victory Ceremonies.

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><p><strong>Review please and thank you! I know it's pretty similar to Katniss' time after she won but I figured all of the victors would be treated the same really!<strong>

**Also, MAN I am so excited to go see the movie tomorrow, I re-read the book in preparation haha :)**


	18. Chapter 18

Once again I am clad in a beautiful outfit worthy of the Capitol audience. My prep team have really outdone themselves. When I look in the mirror I can hardly believe this stunning creature is me. My body is gaunt from the days in the arena, but they have padded out the inside of this dress so I look like I have flawless curves. The dress is a pale blue-green, made of a floaty chiffony material – it reminds me of the ocean, of home. I close my eyes and imagine that I am back there already.

I stand in the damp room under the training centre, waiting to be propelled up on stage, steeling myself to make a good impression. I hear loud applause as my prep team are presented to the audience, followed by my stylist. As brainless as they seem, they have done their job well and I am truly grateful. I know when Finnick has appeared on the stage, because there is such a ruckus. Cheering, clapping, no doubt showering him with flowers – heck they're probably throwing their underwear at him. The Capitol just love Finnick Odair. I wonder how they will feel about me as victor.

There is no more time to wonder, as the plate I'm standing on slowly rises into the open air. I force a wide smile onto my face as I look around at the crowd. I wave, I blow kisses. They cheer and clap for me as loud as they did for Finnick, to my surprise.

Caesar stands next to me and claps me jovially on the back. 'Jude! Congratulations! How do you feel?'

'I feel great Caesar! Nothing better than a good Capitol makeover to get a girl back on her feet!' I say brightly.

'Well you look beautiful! Doesn't she look fabulous?" he addresses the crowd and they respond with a loud cheer. I keep the smile on my face, even though I want nothing more than to cry. All of these people watching have spent the last few weeks watching me suffer for their entertainment. Now I have to try and impress them again. It's just wrong on so many levels.

'Now, Jude. We will get a chance to talk all about the Games from your point of view tomorrow, but tonight is your chance to watch the highlights of this year's Hunger Games!' Caesar announces. As though it is a special treat for me.

I may as well give the audience what they want. 'I can't wait! I'm excited to see the action that I missed out on first time around!' I gush. The words are just flowing out of me, meaningless, false. I sound like the other victors I have watched at this moment. The Careers who wanted more than anything to win and didn't let anything stand in their way. Enthusiastic and triumphant having won and achieved all of their dreams. I guess that's who I am now so I might as well act like it.

Caesar smiles and directs me to the Victor's chair, a huge throne made of gold with red velvet cushions, for me to watch and relive the horror from. On for three hours, this is required viewing for all of Panem. Everyone in the country will be watching this, and watching my reactions to what shows on the screen. I settle myself comfortably and try to keep my face as cheerful as possible, whatever may happen.

It is as horrible as I have anticipated. I saw enough of these deaths first time around, caused enough of them myself. It's hell to watch them again. The bloodbath. Milo's death. Ruby and Cleo's argument that really made me rethink my decision to ally with the careers. I can't help but smile when I watch myself team up with Eva. Despite the horror her death caused me, I wouldn't change allying with her, forming our short friendship.

I fight back tears as her death is shown, reliving the shock I felt when I realized what had happened. I know Finnick only did what he thought would save me – if she had been alive, I probably would have stayed on the ground and been there when the Careers came along, and then we both would have been dead. Still, it's hard to forgive him fully.

The feast. Cleo turning on Lex, me shooting her. I'm shocked at the expression of satisfaction on my face in that moment that was captured by the cameras. I knew I didn't feel too guilty about killing her, but I didn't realize I looked so happy about it.

The wildcats and the poor girl from District 6. I want nothing more than to look away, but I can't. I have to watch her agonizing death over again, and it's just as gruesome the second time around.

Finally, Ruby and I on the cliff, facing off against each other. Our forced civility and joviality before we fight to the death. Me collapsing onto the ground in relief after her cannon fires. There, the recap ends. I'm grateful it doesn't show me slumped on the ground in tears, unable even to reach out for the ladder.

I feel like hanging my head in shame when a montage of pictures of the tributes I killed is played. Including Eva, I killed five people. Five! I'll have to see their families when I tour the districts for my Victory tour. I have no idea how I'll deal with that. The only tribute with more kills was Ruby. She killed four at the bloodbath and two after that. But, unlike me, she doesn't have to live with the consequences of her actions.

Finally, I stand in front of the audience and am crowned victor by President Snow himself. He freaks me out, with his huge lips and the reek of roses that eminates from him. But I force myself to smile widely as he places the solid gold crown on my head. The second it's there, I can't wait to get it off. Its heavy weight on my head is so constricting, just a reminder of everything that has happened, all of the horrors I have been through.

With a final goodnight from Caesar and a reminder to tune in for the final interviews tomorrow, I am released back to my quarters, where I take off the crown and fling it unceremoniously to the other side of the room. I crawl into bed and, to my surprise, fall asleep instantly.

.

.

I feel as though I have just fallen asleep when I'm being shaken awake again.

'Jude!' Finnick says urgently. 'Wake up, we need to talk.'

'Finnick?' I rub my eyes, unsure of what is happening. Outside the window the sky is still dark, it must be the middle of the night.

'I need to talk to you,' he repeats.

'Can't it wait until morning?'

'No, Jude!' For the first time since I have met him, Finnick sounds angry. He reaches and turns on the bedside lamp, forcing me fully awake. 'This is important.'

'Okay, I get it,' I grumble as I sit up. Then I laugh as I realize. 'Wow, Finnick Odair is in my bed. Most girls in the country would be pretty damn jealous of me right now! I bet they'd pay to swap places with me,' I joke, punching him playfully on the shoulder.

He just looks stonily back at me. 'That's sort of what I want to talk to you about.'

I'm confused. 'What? Girls wanting to sleep with you? Because that's not exactly important or surprising news.'

'No. Women paying to sleep with me. And now men paying to sleep with you.'

'What...what are you talking about?' I say shakily. He looks at the ground. 'Finnick, what do you mean?' I ask desperately.

When he looks up again, his eyes are brimming with tears. 'I was hoping it wouldn't happen, Jude, I really was.' The tone of his voice is almost pleading. 'I thought maybe I was just unlucky, that it doesn't happen to everyone...'

I feel sick as I wait for him to finish. He grabs my hand.

'Tonight...I was speaking with some of your sponsors. They commented on your beauty. They...enquired about the possibility of paying for your services.' Finally he looks me in the eye.

My jaw drops. 'Well, just say no, obviously,' I say, appalled to learn about another of the Capitol's perversions. As if it wasn't bad enough that they watch us fight to the death, they want to pay for our 'services' too? They disgust me. All of them.

Finnick looks agonized. 'Jude, it is not that simple. Believe me, I wish it were, for both of our sakes.' I try to interrupt him, but he holds up a hand. 'When I was made those kind of offers...President Snow said that if I didn't go along with them, they would kill my family. Annie. Everyone that I care about.'

'Who's Annie?' I ask dazedly, unable to digest anything else he has said.

Finnick smiles slightly. 'She's the one I really love. Annie Cresta from District 4. She's a year behind you in school. I've known her since I was a kid and now I have to protect her from the Capitol.' He pauses. 'Jude, I've done a lot of things I'm not proud of, but it was to keep the ones I love safe. If I had to go back, I wouldn't change it, not if it meant losing Annie or anybody else.'

'So if I don't do what they want they'll kill Luke? My mother? Is that what you're saying?' He nods. I slump back into the pile of pillows, tears rolling down my cheeks. I can't help but think that maybe I would have been better off if I had just died in the arena, if I had just let Ruby kill me in the end.

Because I have no idea what to do now that saving the people I love means sacrificing myself. Haven't I suffered enough already?

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><p><strong>Don't forget to review :)<strong>


	19. Chapter 19

We stay awake late into the night, talking everything over. I don't know how or when I manage to fall asleep, but I do. When I wake up, sunlight is streaming through the window, casting light across Finnick's inert form. He's curled up into a ball beside me, his mouth slightly open and eyes closed. He looks so young like this, all of the stress washed away from his face in sleep. Nothing like the worried haggard man I spoke to last night. Nothing like the Finnick I've seen on TV either, the charming and suave tribute so beloved by everyone, with a witty answer for everything.

Seeing him like this reminds me that he is only the same age as I am, just barely an adult. I mentally slap myself for not realizing before how much suffering he has gone through. How could I have believed that all of those women were just his playthings, and not the other way around? Despite his beauty and good nature, to them he is just nothing more than just another District slave to be used for their amusement.

Like they want me to be. I just can't bear the thought.

I sit up and put my face in my hands. As I move, I pull the blankets away from Finnick, who mumbles something incomprehensible and turns onto his back, sprawling his body across the bed, whacking me in the stomach in the process. 'Ow!' I shove him. Admittedly a slight overreaction, especially to the guy who has saved my life a few times over. I guess I'm still a little on edge. After everything that's happened and everything that is still at risk, could anyone blame me?

He looks at me with blurry eyes, appearing confused. 'Sorry, did I hit you or something? I've been told I flail around a lot in my sleep. Did I hurt you?'

'That's – ' before I can finish, the door bursts open and my prep team charge in. They stop abruptly when they see us sitting in the bed together.

'OH MY GOD!' Bizia looks as though she's about to faint.

'We are SO sorry, we didn't mean to interrupt!' says Testa, winking at me with his heavily glittered eyes.

'You're not interrupting anything,' Finnick says coolly. 'This isn't what you're thinking and I'd appreciate if you wouldn't go gossiping to all of your friends about it.'

'Us? Gossip?' Bizia squeals. 'Please! Your secrets would be, like, soo safe with us!'

'We're just here to prepare Jude for her last interview,' the last one, whose name I can't remember, announces. 'Buuut we can give you guys a minute or two if you like.' She wiggles her arched silver eyebrows suggestively.

'No that's okay, I'm ready now,' I sigh. 'Do what you need to do.'

Finnick stands up to go. 'Jude, remember what we talked about.' He looks intensely at me and I nod. Then he is gone and I am left with the prep team for the last time. I sit back and let them take complete control. Soon I will be home and I won't have to deal with any of this anymore, hopefully for a long time. Well, for at least six months, until the Victory Tour starts. That is, if my plan works and I don't have to go back to the Capitol constantly for...appointments. I shudder involuntarily, earning a screech of discontent from Bizia because I have caused her to smear eyeliner across my forehead.

.

.

Soon, I am perched on a chair opposite Caesar Flickerman again, trying to mentally prepare myself. Is this a good idea? Will it be enough to keep everybody safe but protect me too? Or will I just drag everyone else down with me?

Studio lights shine down on us, illuminating Caesar's green tinged lips and eyes, making him look even more unnatural. He turns to me with a massive grin and I know it's time to start, the cameras are rolling.

'Jude! How did you enjoy the recap of the Games?' he asks cheerily.

'Oh it was great! Really exciting, you guys must have been on the edge of your seats at home, huh!'

'I must say, it was one of my favourite Games so far!' He pats my hand. 'Well, I know a lot of people are probably wondering, what made you leave your original alliance? That sure caused some trouble!'

I swallow and force myself to smirk. 'I got what I wanted out of them, weapons and supplies. After that I had no interest in sticking with them.'

'But why not go off on your own?' Caesar presses. 'Why share those supplies?'

I freeze, staring dazedly at the wall behind Caesar.

'Jude?'

'I...' I swallow the lump in my throat. 'I liked Eva a lot. I wouldn't change anything.' I don't know what else to say. I beg Caesar with my eyes to give up, not to ask me any more about this. Truth is, I don't know why I did ally with Eva, why I didn't just let her take supplies and fade into the night, then take off for the forest on my own. It was a spur of the moment decision and I can't explain it.

Caesar must take pity on my obvious discomfort because he changes the subject. 'So what will you do when you get home to District 4? I'm sure plenty of people will be delighted to see you!'

'The first thing I'm going to do? Go for a swim. I have missed the ocean!'

'And who are you looking forward to seeing? Family? Friends?'

'My mother, of course,' I smile, then add, 'Oh and, obviously, my fiancé. I've missed him a lot.' I say it casually, like it's nothing, but inside my heart is pounding as I await a reaction.

Caesar gasps. 'Fiancé? Why, Jude! You've been holding out on us! Why didn't you mention this before?'

I fiddle with the ring Finnick supplied me with that now sits on my ring finger, making sure everyone will notice it. 'He just asked me after I was reaped, when we were saying goodbye. I didn't want everyone to know. You know, in case I didn't come back.' I allow myself to sound a little choked up and Caesar closes his eyes and shakes his head sadly as though he understands, ever the drama queen. Of course, now that I'm victor, the possibility of me having died is terrible to him. Yet he's not bothered at all by the 23 kids that died in order for me to still be here. A wave of disgust nearly overcomes me, but I force myself to continue. 'But now that I've won, I'm okay with telling everyone about it!' I laugh. 'In fact I want everyone to know.'

'So are you going to get married straight away when you go home?'

'As soon as possible!' I reply cheerily. I hope I'm not freaking Luke out too much with this talk. It'll be the first he's heard of any of this, Finnick and I just decided if I made a high profile announcement about being off the market, Snow might not be able to get a good price for me. I can explain everything tomorrow when I see him. If it works. Although I probably won't know that for a while.

'Wow!' Caesar whistles. 'Well he sure is a lucky fellow! What's his name?'

'Luke Odair.' I giggle. 'So next year you might have two Odairs mentoring District 4!'

'And I will greatly look forward to seeing you again if that happens! Well, that's about all we have time for today. Ladies and gentlemen I present for the last time, this year's victor Jude Parren of District 4!' Caesar and I both stand up and bow to the cameras. Then it's over, my final television appearance. I just hope it made the point I was trying to.

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><p><strong>Pretty please review! Por favor, s'il vous plait, más é do thoil é...Those are all of the languages that I can say please in haha!<strong>


	20. Chapter 20

'There it is!' I say excitedly, pointing out the train window at the sparkle of the ocean in the distance. I'm nearly home. I press myself against the glass, not wanting to take my eyes off it for a second. I never thought I'd be so happy to see the ocean again. Just the sight of it makes my body sag against the window with relief.

Finnick chuckles. 'Well don't mash your face against the glass like that when we're pulling into the station. Luke sure as hell won't marry you if he sees that.'

I reluctantly peel myself away from the window and return to my seat beside Finnick. I tap my foot impatiently in the ground and he pats my leg lightly. 'Calm down. We'll be there soon.'

'I...' I trail off and he looks at me questioningly. 'I'm a little nervous,' I admit. 'That everybody is going to hate me because of what I've done.'

Finnick squeezes my hand comfortingly. 'They won't hate you. The people who liked you before still will, and the Career wannabes will be obsessed with you.' He rolls his eyes. 'Maybe you'll take some of the heat off me for a while. They keep following me around begging me to teach them to use a trident properly. Pretty annoying. The other victors might not be too happy with another addition to Victors Village though. Getting a little crowded.' He laughs.

I had forgotten that I will be given a new house in the special area of the district reserved for the victors of the Games. Twelve beautiful mansions, right on the nicest beach in the district, five of them are currently occupied. I will make six. There have been other victors, of course. District 4 is a pretty wealthy district and it produces Career tributes, giving it more victors than most. We've won at least fifteen games or maybe more, but not all of the victors are alive. Some have succumbed to old age and illness of the body, and some have succumbed to illness of the mind.

When I was a really young kid, only three or four, a guy, Kai Maher killed himself after returning from the Games. Before he killed himself, he took some weapons from the training school and went on a rampage around the main market. A lot of people died that day, including my father. He was crushed in the stampede from the market square as people fled the psychotic victor. I don't really remember him enough to miss him, but I do feel bad for my mother, left alone with two young daughters. I didn't hear too much about exactly what happened, because I was so young, but the stories were still going around when I got to reaping age, that Kai was shouting things about the tributes and gamemakers as he attacked people at random. He must have thought he was back in the arena, doing what he had to do to survive. It made it hard to hate him for what he had done, so most people directed their anger towards the Capitol. Not that it changed anything, two kids from the district were still sent off to the slaughter every year.

Other than Finnick, I strain to remember who the other remaining victors are. There's Mags, of course, everybody knows her. She's pretty old, she was alive when the Hunger Games actually began, and she won way back in the tenth or eleventh Games when she was a teenager. To look at her now you wouldn't think she was ever capable of killing anybody.

We pass the rest of the journey with Finnick reminding me of the other occupants of Victors Village, and filling me in on their habits. There's Delmar Hurley, he won about twenty years ago. 'Spends most of his time drinking now. I try to visit him and get him to do stuff but he just isn't interested,' Finnick sighs. Zale Orman, he won a few years before before Delmar. Finnick thinks they drink together most of the time.

Then there's Hali Riva – she's the only victor I know who is married and has a family. She has twin boys. I'm pretty sure this year was their first year being eligible for the reaping, because I've never seen anybody look so terrified as she clutched them in the Square that day. This thought brings another worry bubbling to the surface. Even if everything does work out, and I'm free from the Capitol, with my mother and Luke kept safe, can I marry Luke? Can I risk having children knowing they might end up in the Games? I remember my mother's face as she said her goodbyes to Nina, then to me, and I don't think I'm strong enough to deal with that.

'We'll be there in a minute,' Finnick says quietly, interrupting my reverie. I didn't realize how long I was lost in thought for - now when I look out the window, the ocean is no longer just a twinkle on the horizon. I begin to tremble and sweat breaks out on my forehead, probably ruining my make up.

The train pulls noiselessly to a halt in the station. I seem to be having trouble breathing, but Finnick rubs my back soothingly until I calm down.

'I'm ready.' I take a deep breath and make my way off the train. Almost the second I step foot on the platform, Luke lunges over, picks me up in his arms and spins me around. Then he lowers me down and kisses me. For the first time since I left District 4 a few weeks ago, I relax completely. I'm home.

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I sit on the beach, staring out at the ocean. It's a secluded little stretch of sand, you have to climb over piles of rocks to get here so most people don't bother. There's plenty of other beaches in District 4. Luke and I have been coming to this spot for years. The tide is rising, soon the water will reach my feet. It won't come any further than that, though, I know exactly where to sit after coming here for so many years. The sound of the waves, the calls of seagulls, the grains of sand between my toes; they are all so comforting, so familiar. The combination of them all tells me that I am home, I should be safe here. The sun is setting, giving a brilliant orange glow where it meets the water.

I told my mother I was going for a walk. I'm allowed a night to myself, then tomorrow the District celebrations of my victory begin. I wish it could just be over. All I want to do is forget. Right now, with the salty air whipping my hair around my face and the ocean in front of me, I actually believe for the first time that might be possible.

'I thought I might find you here.' His voice comes from right behind me, making me jump. We didn't get any time alone at the train station, I was dragged off to meet numerous people I didn't care about after that one kiss. When I looked for him again, he was gone. Luke sits down cross legged beside me and picks up a stick, drawing patterns in the sand. We sit in silence for a while, as we have so many times before, watching the sun set. The fiery orange ball has dipped below the horizon and the water is lapping at my toes when we finally speak.

'I've missed you,' Luke says. 'It was just agony watching you in that horrible place every day.'

'It wasn't exactly a barrel of laughs being there either.' It comes out sounding harsher than I intended, accusing almost, so I smile slightly to show that I'm kidding.

'I know.'

'No you don't,' I say sharply, without even turning to look at him.. 'How could you possibly understand?' Tears well up in my eyes. 'Nobody will ever fully know what I've been through, because I'm the only one who came out of it alive.'

Luke takes my chin with his hand and turns my face gently towards him. 'Then tell me. I want to understand how you're feeling,' he says softly.

'I hate myself,' I whisper. 'I just keep thinking that I should have died too. What gives me the right to live and not the others?'

'I need you to be alive. I love you and I need you here. So does your Mom. I think that's enough.'

'They all had family and friends too, Luke.'

'I don't care about them. I'd let everyone in Panem die if it kept you alive,' he says vehemently. 'You're home now, you're safe. Can't you just try and forget about it?'

I sigh. 'I don't know if I can. Believe me I want to.' I turn back and stare at the darkening ocean. Luke puts his arm around me and pulls me towards him. I rest my head on his shoulder and he kisses me lightly on the top of my head. We sit in silence until it's pitch black. All of the stars are out tonight, the sky is completely clear of cloud. I crane my head and try to pick out the familiar constellations of summer. I focus on Sagittarius; the archer. A centaur drawing its bow, ready to let fly an arrow, as I did so many times in the arena. My throat begins to close.

'Sagittarius,' Luke comments quietly. Luke and I have always looked at the stars together, on this very beach. He's the one who originally showed me the constellations, pointed out the archer and said it was me. Of course he'd know what I am looking at right now. 'I'm proud of you, my little archer, whatever you might think about it all. And I love you more than anything.'

'I love you too.'

We sit in silence for a while, then Luke speaks up again. 'By the way, since when are we getting married?'

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><p><strong>I'd love some reviews :) This story will definitely be ending sometime soon...I just keep writing and don't know how to end it lol<strong>


	21. Chapter 21

I was hoping to put off this explanation until tomorrow, to just enjoy this one night with Luke without him having to worry. But I can't leave him in the dark when he's asked me outright, so I explain what Finnick told me and why I said I was getting married. When I stop speaking, Luke just stares at me, green eyes wide.

'Say something,' I plead. He opens his mouth, but nothing comes out and he turns away to look out over the dark water. I continue. 'Luke, I'm sorry I did it without telling you, but I didn't really have a lot of options. I didn't want to wait until I had time to talk to you about it, I wanted to say it before I left the Capitol. Please don't be mad at me.' My voice has picked up to a desperate pitch by the time I stop. When he doesn't reply I grab his chin and turn his face towards me angrily. 'What the hell is the matter with - ' I start, but stop when I see the tears rolling down his cheeks. 'Luke don't cry, please.' I gently sweep the tears from his face with my thumbs. It physically pains me to see him suffering like this.

'I just...I can't believe those people. It's not bad enough that they tried to kill you? Now that you survived their stupid games they have to control your life too? It's not fair. You've been through enough.'

'I know.'

'How have they gotten away with this?' He asks angrily. 'Treating us like their slaves for all these years and we just accept it. Why do we accept it, Jude?'

'We don't really have a choice.'

'Of course we do!' His eyes blaze with passion. 'What would the Capitol be without the districts? They'd have nothing! If we all fought against them, then – '

I clap a hand over his mouth. 'Stop it. It's not going to happen and that kind of talk could get you killed if the wrong person heard it.'

'Nobody is listening but you,' he protests.

'You can't be sure of that. You need to be careful, Luke. You're in enough danger already because of me.'

'I hate that you think you have to protect me. After everything you've been through. I should be the one looking after you.'

'Then marry me,' I say beseechingly.

'Do you actually think that will change anything?' He shakes his head sadly. 'Because I don't. These are the people who make teenagers fight to the death every year, Jude. I don't think the fact that you're married to some pathetic district boy will make any difference. If anything it'll just make me an easier target. Because they'll know you really care about me. I'll just be a better bargaining chip.'

'I'll do what they want then,' I state decidedly. 'I have to.'

'No!' He takes me by the shoulders firmly. 'I would rather die than have anyone using you like that. It makes me sick to my stomach even thinking about it.'

'Then what are we supposed to do? If I don't do what they want they'll kill you. And my Mom. I can't have that on my conscience too. What do I do?'

'I don't know,' he says simply, then kisses me. Not gently like when I got off the train, but passionately, angrily. Pouring all of his emotions into his kiss. His hands expertly explore my body as they have so many times before. The dividing line between us melts away, and I no longer know where he begins and I end. When it's over and I'm lying in his arms, I begin to weep quietly. What we have is so beautiful, so perfect, something to be shared between two people in love. Snow wants to take that special intimacy that only Luke and I share, and turn it into something else, something worthless and degrading that can be bought and sold like a toy.

Luke strokes a strand of hair from my face. 'Marry me anyway. Even if it won't make a difference,' he murmurs. 'Just because it's what you want to do.'

'Of course it's what I want. It's what I've wanted since the first time we even kissed.' I wipe the tears from my cheeks.

'Good, because I love you. No matter what happens, I'm not going to let anything happen to you.'

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Two weeks later, we stand on the beach and say our vows in front of our family and friends, the traditional net woven from long grass covering us. Luke reaches down to dip his fingers in the ocean, then gently touches my lips, leaving a salty taste, and I do the same. The ancient wedding song that is sung at every wedding rings in my ears, and I can't quite believe that it is being sung for me. I gaze into Luke's eyes and realize I have never seen him look so happy. I hope my face isn't betraying the torment I'm going through inside. I can't help but feel that I might be making a mistake.

Finally, there's the kiss that seals the union of marriage, the salty taste on Luke's lips mingling with mine. Then it's over. Luke and I are married, just like I have dreamed of for most of my life. I just never thought that this moment would be so tainted. That I would be so unsure of what is to come. I have heard nothing more of people wanting to buy me since I have returned home, but that's not to say I won't.

Only time will tell.

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><p><strong>Reviews would be lovely :) <strong>

**Soo I think that's it for this story, but I was thinking of doing a follow up story of next year's games, Jude can help Finnick mentor Annie and we can catch up with everything that may have happened in the year. Did Snow leave her alone, will her Mom and Luke be safe? Who knows!**

**Would anyone be interested? Or I could just continue with this story and skip ahead like a year...What do you think?**


	22. Chapter 22

**Sooo I decided to just keep going with this as one long story. I was pretty bored today and ended up writing a bit when I didn't think I would...Hope you like it. This is one year on from Jude's victory...and lots of stuff has happened which will gradually come to light :)**

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><p>I sit up straight in bed; sweat pouring off me, breath coming in gasps. I'm not sure if the screams were just in my dream or if I actually made noise. Given Luke's prone form beside me, they must have just been in my head. I sit there for a moment until my breath returns to normal.<p>

The nightmares haven't gotten any better in the months since the Games. The people I saw die, and worse the people I personally killed, visit me every night in my sleep. Every night I wake up gasping for air, reliving every horrible moment. I look out the window to the sky streaked with light. The sun will rise soon. I quietly slide out of bed so as not to disturb Luke. He's woken nearly every night by my terrors, whispering soothing words to calm me down and get me back to sleep; it wouldn't be fair to deprive him of his current peaceful sleep. I slip on some comfortable clothes and walk quietly downstairs.

Today is the Reaping. It's hard to believe a whole year has passed since my name was called out on that fateful day. Sometimes I wish I could go back to that time before my life changed forever, somehow stop it from happening, or just handle it all differently given a second chance. But I have come to realize that there is no point thinking like that. What's done is done and it can't be changed, as much as I might wish that weren't so.

This day last year, twenty-four tributes were selected, and I am the only one remaining. Six months ago I toured the districts to 'celebrate' my victory. It was the most agonizing experience of my life. Looking into the eyes of the families of the people I killed, knowing how deeply they loathed me, was torture. In District 1, I spotted a small blonde girl of about sixteen, who glared at me with hatred burning like fire in her eyes. She had to be Ruby's sister, she looked just like her. The way she looked at me reminded me of how I looked at Adira, the girl from District 2 who killed my sister. How could I blame her for hating me so much when I had felt the exact same way?

After the districts, I went to the Capitol….

I shake my head to stop these thoughts, wanting to forget everything that happened in those few days I spent there. I walk out the front door, making my way down the dunes to the beautiful beach located right next to Victors Village. I smile when I see that he's already here, looking out over the water. We meet here pretty much every morning. Neither of us sleeps very well.

'Hey, Finn.' I plop down next to him, legs crossed.

'Hi, Jude,' Finnick replies absently, continuing to make complex knots on the length of rope he holds. His hands shake slightly as they work the rope.

I rest a hand gently on his shoulder. 'It's okay, she'll be fine. She won't get picked.' He doesn't respond, just shakes his head slightly. 'Say it, Finnick,' I demand.

'Annie will be fine,' he says tersely.

'Wow. Very convincing.' I laugh, even though it's not funny in the slightest. Of course he's worried. There is every chance that Annie could be reaped today and there's not a thing we could do about it. I'm so relieved that Luke is no longer of reaping age. We're both safe from that danger forever. 'It's her last year. She'll be alright,' I say again, trying to make him feel better. He just raises his eyebrows at me. 'Okay. I'll shut up. I'm not helping, I get it!' I pick up the other end of his rope and start to make my own knots in it, and we sit in silence until the morning light has filled the sky.

.

.

I finally make my way back to my house, stopping outside for a moment to take it in. Even after living here for nearly a year, I can't quite believe that it's mine, this vast house. I sigh and walk inside.

Luke's head pops out the archway into the kitchen when I slam the front door. 'There you are,' he says, making his way over and throwing his arms around me. 'How do you feel? I know this must be a tough day for you.' He leads me into the kitchen and waves his arm dramatically at the spread he has prepared while I was gone. Fruit, bread, pancakes – a breakfast fit for the Capitol.

'Thank you, sweetheart,' I say, settling down to the feast.

'So are you okay?' He asks carefully when I don't say anything else.

'I'm fine. I am. I met Finnick though, and he isn't doing too good.' I take a huge bite of salty bread.

'Worried about Annie?'

'Of course he is. I don't know what I'd do if you were still able to be reaped.'

'Well I'm safe. We both are. So you don't need to worry.' He kisses my forehead and places his hand gently on my stomach, softly caressing my small bump. 'And we are going to be so happy when this baby comes along.'

I force myself to smile. 'Yeah I know.' It's getting more and more difficult as the months go on to act as though everything is okay. How do I tell Luke that this baby might not be his? That I lied about what happened in the Capitol and kept him completely in the dark. It would destroy him. I can't bring myself to do it, not when he is this happy.

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It comes to noon and the sun is high in the sky as Finnick and I take our seats on the stage in the town square, waiting for the unfortunate tributes to be sent up to us. Finnick is pale beneath his tanned skin and keeps whispering something under his breath. I pat his hand comfortingly and look out at the people filing into the square, herded into groups based on their age like cattle.

Last year I was one of them, praying not to be picked. They all look as terrified as I imagine I did. Finally, they are all in place and Minnie Tuza, the usual Capitol escort, trots onto the stage. Her hair is now electric blue, matching her new nails. She looks just as ridiculous as she did last year as she grabs the microphone.

'Welcome welcome!' She trills cheerfully. 'Happy Hunger Games!' Everyone stares at her in stony silence and she continues. 'It's time to pick one brave young man and woman for the honour of representing your district in the 70th Annual Hunger Games! How exciting!' She walks over to the huge glass bowl filled with girls' names. 'Ladies first,' she announces. She sticks her hand into the bowl and hovers over the papers before swooping to pick one. Finnick takes a sharp breath in beside me as she steps back to the microphone.

'Annie Cresta!'

I look at Finnick in horror. He's breathing quickly, his hands curled into fists. I look back out to the crowd to see Annie making her way up to the stage flanked by peacekeepers, dark head bent down looking at the ground. She wordlessly takes her place standing next to Minnie, not looking anywhere but at her own feet. Minnie smiles and proceeds to pick the boy tribute, completely unaware of the devastation she has just caused.

'Zale Stokes!' A tall blonde haired boy from the sixteen-year-old section makes his way up to the stage. My heart breaks for him, because whatever chance he had of getting home alive no longer exists, not when Annie is in the Games. Finnick will direct any sponsors straight to her. He'll do anything to save her, no matter what, or who, it costs.

'Ladies and Gentlemen, your tributes for the 70th Hunger Games, Zale Stokes and Annie Cresta!'

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><p><strong>Pretty please review. Even if it's to say something mean! (But not too mean haha - constructive!)<strong>


	23. Chapter 23

Hey guys, I hit a wall with this story, no idea where to go next with it!

So I have decided to start a new story about a different Hunger Games…I have some fun ideas for a new arena and characters and everything so I would love it if everyone who subscribed to this story would check out my new one!

Thanks!


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